Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Officers Shot in Detroit; Ann Pettway Faces Kidnapping Charges; Giuliani on 2012 race; Fixing Failing Schools; Wal-Mart Shooting; Henry Hill on Mob Busts

Aired January 23, 2011 - 19:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome, everyone, to the second hour of the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Don Lemon at the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta.

We have a lot of news to get you caught up on but we have this right now. It is breaking news. It is happening now out of Detroit. And it leads our top stories.

At least three police officers we're told are shot inside the precinct on the city's west side. There you're looking at video of the scene. This is all coming to us. That's according to our affiliate -- our Detroit affiliates, which report a gunman walked into the precinct there and opened fire. The officers were taken to a hospital. Their conditions right now are not yet known.

We are working with our reporters there on the scene and our affiliates and we're also expecting a press conference. Police say officers returned fire and the gunman is dead.

So joining me now to talk about it as I said is Detroit -- is an investigative reporter from Detroit. His name is Scott Lewis. He's from our affiliate WXYZ. Scott, what in the world is going on?

SCOTT LEWIS, INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER, WXYZ (via telephone): All right, this has been a tough week here in Detroit. And this is the second police officer to be shot in metro Detroit in one week. Unfortunately the other one from a suburb called Livonia who was investigating a burglary last week was shot and killed.

And now we have -- I can confirm not three but four officers injured in the shooting at a police district on the northwest side of Detroit. It happened about 4:30 today.

LEMON: Four officers. Describe to us what happened. Because I know that you're getting reports there. This gunman just walks into the precinct, and what happened?

LEWIS: Well, what we have in the Northwest District, in fact all of the police districts in Detroit, there's no bulletproof glass. You just have police officers sitting behind desks. Around 4:30 today a man walked into the district. He looked to the police like he was just a citizen coming in for some kind of help. My information is that he walked by the police desk, raised the shot gun, fired a shot at a female sergeant, hitting her in the chest. But fortunately she had a bulletproof vest and was not seriously hurt. At that point he turned and fired another shot behind the desk. He hit a police commander in the back. The police commander returned fire. Another sergeant was hit in the face, I think a grazing wound.

When all was said and done, four people were hurt. The police commander is in surgery right now. He's in pretty serious condition and the gunman was killed by other officers who returned fire.

LEMON: Ok. Scott, I know you just went through that. But slowly go through the number of people, the number of officers injured. You said four at least shot and their conditions again.

LEWIS: We have four police officers shot. The -- the most seriously hurt is the police commander who was shot in the back, the side, and the hand. He's in the hospital right now in serious condition in surgery. The other officers, I'm told, that their injuries are not life-threatening. One may not have even gone to the hospital the sergeant, who was hit in the chest had a bulletproof vest.

So it looks to me at this point like only one of the officers was very seriously hurt by this gunman. And at this point we don't know what set him off, why he walked in to a police station around 4:30 in the afternoon with a just shot gun and decided to just open fire.

LEMON: Ok and the gunman, again, is dead. And don't go anywhere, Scott. Because I'm going to keep you on phone again because we're hearing that they're going to have a press conference shortly here. Again this is breaking news that we're hearing and it's coming out of Detroit.

Let's get those pictures back up. At least four police officers -- that's according to our affiliate WXYZ. Four police officers shot there on the west side of the city. A gunman just walked into a precinct there and just opened fire. A number of those officers are still in the hospital.

Again, we are -- the reporter is telling us the condition there. He said one of the officers most seriously hurt is a police commander shot in the back, the side, and the hand. The police chief and the mayor, about to hold a press conference at any moment.

Joining us now is Scott Lewis from WXYZ. He's an investigative reporter there. How -- do you know where we are on this update from police and from the mayor, Scott?

LEWIS: I don't know exactly what they're going to have to say, how many details they'll release. But I -- I know it was a very chaotic scene at the police district. This was all captured on the security cameras.

And one of my sources that I talked to had seen some of the video. There were a number of cameras, so it would jump from camera to camera, and at times it was difficult to tell the exact sequence of events. But I'm sure they're trying to sort out exactly who this guy was, what his grievance was and I'm hoping that the mayor and the police chief will be able to give us even more information on the condition of the officers, particularly the condition of the commander, who we're told was seriously hurt.

LEMON: Yes, now -- now, listen, Scott. You said -- you -- you have looked at video. Do you have your hands on that video now? Is it -- is this surveillance video, cameras from within the police station, right the precinct?

LEWIS: No, I don't have my hands on the video. I talked to a police source who was at the scene and was able to see pieces of the video to describe to me some of what -- what happened inside the station, but I'm sure that they're going to -- they're going to take that video and secure it and they'll be going through it carefully frame by frame to really piece together the exact sequence of what happened.

LEMON: And Scott, at last check from CNN, there were at least three officers who were injured here. How did you get the fourth officer?

LEWIS: I just have several police sources I'm working that are telling me that there were four. And again, that only one of them at this point appears to be a serious injury.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: And the only --

LEWIS: Again, I think that -- that we'll get some good information out of the mayor and the police chief when they hold this news conference momentarily.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: Are they -- do you know, is it at city hall, is it at the hospital, or is it at the police precinct? Where are they holding it, do you know?

LEWIS: You know, I don't know where they're going to hold the news conference. I would assume it's down at police headquarters which is in downtown Detroit. This is one of our districts. We have six or seven police districts in Detroit. And some of the officers that I've been talking to today on the phone were concerned about security at these places because they don't have bulletproof glass.

And in many of Detroit's suburbs where the crime rate is much lower than in the city of Detroit you have police stations that you walk in and the officers are all protected by bulletproof glass.

So I think we will have some questions raised in the coming days and weeks about whether we have enough security in these police stations in our city.

LEMON: Yes. That -- and that is very -- that's a very good point. Listen, we are looking at live pictures that are coming in. Here we go. There -- that's the mayor there. The mayor of Detroit, Dave Bing and let's listen in to this press conference about the officers who were shot today.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

CHIEF RALPH L. GODBEE, JR., DETROIT POLICE: Four of our officers were wounded. I will give you the ranks but at this time I want to police ask that you not give names. We are not sure if all of the family members have been notified and we certainly do not want them to find out their family member was injured through the media.

And so I respect your journalistic integrity and hopefully you will abide by that please.

The commander was injured; he was shot in the lower back. And he just recently came out of surgery. His condition during the surgery was considered critical because any time you go into surgery it's considered critical.

However the prognosis for the commander, we feel, is very good, we're very encouraged by the doctors' report. A sergeant, female sergeant that was shot in the chest but fortunately her bullet-resistant vest deflected any major injury. She has been treated and released.

And one of our police officers had a graze wound to the head. His condition is temp serious. I am sure he's going to be kept for observation. He's doing well, he's talking, alert. I had an opportunity to speak with him. And the last injured -- injured individual is a sergeant also, a male. He had a graze wound to the head. Again, he is conscious, alert, talking.

So we are actively investigating this right now. It really is as cut and dry as I have just indicated to you. I want to thank the mayor for his leadership in being here, members of the Board of Police Commissioners, Councilman James Tate, our chaplains; I mean just hundreds of police officers who came to support their comrades who are fallen.

The individual who is responsible for initiating this is deceased. We returned fire. He is deceased. For the public's sake, the sixth precinct, the Plymouth and Warwick station because of the nature of what happened, it's an active crime scene, it's being investigated.

So if there's any service that the public needs relative to police reports, we recommend they go to the 10th precinct or the 12th precinct. Sergeant Stevens from public information will provide the addresses. If you have any questions you can dial 313-596-2200. That's the office of public information and we'll be able to direct you from there.

Outside of that as a department we're just very sobered by the events but just very relieved that it appears that all of the officers are going to be ok. With that, if you have any questions, we'll take a few questions.

QUESTION: Where did you say this individual -- are you familiar with the individual suspect?

GODBEE JR.: Well, right now, it is just really too early to characterize -- and we have identified who he is. We're going to our due diligence criminal history. I mean everything that goes with an investigation relative to an incident of this magnitude but right now we have very little to offer about the perpetrator.

QUESTION: What kind of security is in place at that police station?

GODBEE JR.: The same security that is in place at every police station which is cameras. I've -- in light of what happened in -- in the Tucson, Arizona, obviously, with Congresswoman Giffords and then with this incident, of course, we have to take a step back and reassess security procedures at each one of our facilities.

Inspector Don Johnson (ph) who heads our Homeland Security, he has already started the task of doing an analysis of all of our precincts and every place where we serve the public. And it is just -- it's possible -- and more than likely that we will be changing a number of things relative -- relative to standard operating procedures as to how we screen our public before they come in.

Obviously we want to still maintain a -- a community policing format. We want to engage our public. But by the same token, incidents like this are -- are very sobering and remind us just how vulnerable we all are, especially in the public sector when we offer our lives every day to public service.

So we have to be extra vigilant. I owe it to my officers. We owe it to our officers to take a look at security procedures at all of our facilities.

QUESTION: Sir, do you know how the events unfolded, I mean he comes in --

(END COVERAGE)

LEMON: All right, you are listening to the Mayor of Detroit there, Dave Bing, describing the situation of what happened. Just to recap a little bit. That's the police chief, I'm sorry, that's the police chief of Detroit there describing what happened. Ralph Godbee -- Ralph Godbee, the police chief saying that four officers were injured when a gunman on a rampage apparently just walked into the precinct -- a precinct on the west side of Detroit and just started shooting.

He also warned the reporters in the crowd to not to run out and to talk to family members because some of them had not been notified. He said among the injured, a commander hit in the lower back. Out of surgery right now, is in critical condition. But the prognosis is good.

A sergeant, a woman sergeant shot in the chest. Her vest deflected any major injuries treated and released.

Another officer has a graze wound to the face, serious condition but really kept for observation in the hospital. And then, another sergeant, a man, he says another graze wound to the head. He's conscious, alert, and is talking.

Right now they say they don't know who the gunman is. He is dead and they don't know his motive, why he went in there. They have no idea. But they do say that they are reassessing security at their police precinct right now.

We have an affiliate reporter joining us. He's going to talk to us in just a moment.

Also I want to tell you some other breaking news happening today; exclusive information that we got from Connecticut. That woman who is accused of kidnapping that baby from a hospital 23 years ago, well, she is in custody now and she is talking. And our Susan Candiotti is following that story with some breaking information.

We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Welcome back everyone.

More breaking news here on CNN; this is in Connecticut. Federal kidnapping charges have now been filed against a woman suspected of snatching a baby girl more than 20 years ago and raising her as her own child. Ann Pettway is now in custody in Connecticut.

And our Susan Candiotti broke the story of Pettway's surrender exclusively on CNN a short time ago. She is in Bridgeport right now with the circumstances that led up to Ann Pettway's surrender and the federal charges that she is facing right now.

Susan, she was spotted trying to pawn some jewelry.

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Don. Apparently the big break in this case started yesterday afternoon when she was sighted at a pawn shop here in Bridgeport, Connecticut. And she was trying to sell some of her jewelry. She didn't like the price that she was given and walked out. She only spent about two minutes there.

But an alert employee called the police and they responded to the pawn shop right away.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DET. KEITH BRYANT, BRIDGEPORT, CONNECTICUT POLICE DEPT: They were able to obtain some video surveillance from the store and based on what they observed and what photographs that we had of her we confirmed the fact that it was her without question.

CANDIOTTI (on camera): And she came in by herself?

BRYANT: She came in by herself, yes. She turned around and she left on foot. The clerk advised the detectives that he didn't observe her get into a car. He immediately jumped on the telephone and called the police department; made them aware of his sightings.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CANDIOTTI: A law enforcement source tells us that sometime after that, it might have even happened today, that Pettway contacted the police department and after that she turned herself in to the FBI -- Don.

LEMON: All right. So Susan, you broke this part of the story earlier on CNN saying that she now faces federal kidnapping charges. So where is she now?

CANDIOTTI: Well, we believe that she has been transported to Manhattan. We know this because she is making her very first appearance there in federal court on these federal kidnapping charges there tomorrow morning.

LEMON: Susan, is there any word from Carlina White or her family about Pettway's surrender?

CANDIOTTI: You know, we haven't been able to reach the family tonight about this latest development, but we can tell you Carlina, and especially her mother, reportedly last week had said that if there's one thing that the birth mother would like to do is she'd like speak to the woman responsible for stealing her baby from the hospital and ask her why did she do this.

LEMON: Susan Candiotti, thank you for your reporting.

More than 120 alleged members of the Mafia arrested; the biggest mob bust in U.S. history. You'll hear from a real mob insider, the guy who the movie "Goodfellas" was based on.

And President Obama gets ready for his big State of the Union address to the nation. Our political editor Mark Preston has a preview of that and the best Sunday Politics for you.

But first I want to check out what actor Matthew McConaughey is doing to help kids develop healthy habits for life in this "Impact Your World" segment.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY, ACTOR: Hi, I'm Matthew McConaughey. We can make an impact on kids' lives by teaching them to exercise right, eat healthy and make the best life choices they can so they can grow up and be the best men and women they can be. That's what we're trying to do at the Just Keep Living Foundation.

So it's about making the choices where you can be the best you can be, the happiest you can be in your own life. Join the movement. Impact your world at CNN.com/impact.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: All right. This just in to CNN; it is another breaking news story. This is becoming ridiculous. Another shooting, we're told, this time in Washington State. And it also involves police officers.

Here's what our affiliate KIRO is reporting -- KIRO. They're saying that two officers were shot at a Port Orchard Wal-Mart, two officers and two victims. Two other victims shot at a Wal-Mart in Port Orchard. They're also saying there are earlier reports that two suspects in custody at the scene and the scene is secure.

We're going to continue to follow this developing story; actually breaking news here on CNN. Again, two police officers, two other victims shot at a Wal-Mart in Washington State.

Also breaking news to tell you about out of Detroit; at least four police officers -- that's according to the police chief who just held a press conference a short time ago -- four police officers shot at a police precinct on the west side of that city.

Earlier today a gunman walked in on a rampage, started firing at the officers. Four of them were injured. One right now is in serious condition, but they believe the prognosis is ok. The gunman, according to the police chief, is dead. They don't know who the gunman is. They don't know the motive.

Following both of these breaking news stories here on CNN.

It is time to talk politics right now.

Some really interesting developments involving possible presidential hopefuls in 2012 and our senior political editor, Mark Preston, is here to share his insight.

So Mark, hate to come to you after such bad news stories, so we're going to change the tone right here because it's important what's going to happen on Tuesday night. But first tomorrow night at 9:00 p.m. here, Rudy Giuliani is on our new program. It's called "PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT". And he has some really intriguing things to say about running for president and about Sarah Palin. Check it out and we'll talk.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PIERS MORGAN, CNN HOST, "PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT": Would you be more tempted to run if she wasn't?

RUDY GIULIANI, FORMER MAYOR, NEW YORK CITY: Maybe the opposite.

MORGAN: Really?

GIULIANI: Yes. Maybe the opposite because, you know, my one chance if I have a chance is that I'm considered a moderate Republican. So, the more Republicans in which I can show a contrast, probably the better chance that I have.

MORGAN: So you've become the acceptable face as a Republican Party.

GIULIANI: I don't know if I'm acceptable, but the question is, the way I got elected mayor of New York City was not being acceptable. My slogan was "You can't do any worse. Things are so bad you need me."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Ok. So, Mark, explain to us Rudy Giuliani's thinking if you can.

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Well, you know, Don, there's been a lot of talk in the Republican Party especially with the advent of the Tea Party Movement and certainly their influence over the Republican Party. Is it going to move more to the right or is it going to become more social conservative? Or is it going a big tent party.

What we're hearing from the former mayor there is the fact he thinks that he would be a candidate that would be appeal to the big tent party. These are folks who are probably a little bit more liberal on social issues such as abortion and same-sex marriage but when it comes down to spending and the economy he could really appeal well to them as well as the idea of being really tough on crime. So I think that's what we're hearing from Rudy Giuliani.

LEMON: All right. Mark Preston, thank you very much. We'll talk more about that. We want to say that "PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT" airs 9:00 p.m. Eastern here on CNN.

And also Mark is going to talk to us a little bit later on tonight at 10:00 p.m. He's going to take us forward with the President's State of the Union address on Tuesday. Thank you, Mark. See you soon.

PRESTON: Thanks Don.

LEMON: Why did former dictator "Baby Doc" Duvalier return to Haiti? We'll ask a U.S. lawyer who is representing him.

Plus, your best viral videos including new 3-D imaging that will cause your eyes to flutter.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: There weren't many but several viral videos caught our attention. First up, the future of 3-D imaging.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here, I see a -- I see a shape that feels really real. I could even touch it. The quality is really amazing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Is that real? All right. Well, you can see that the device is attached to his temples. His eyes flutter wildly. We doubt movie audiences will go for it but you never know. But it is definitely one of the more unusual videos that we saw this week.

LEMON: The song "Misirlou" is a popular Greek tune that dates back to at least the 1920s. Most people today associate it with the film "Pulp Fiction". Now listen to this version. It features one guitar, four hands, and two pencils.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(MUSIC)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Now I know that song. Ok. Virtuoso Polish guitarist, Partyzant is the talent behind this video. His signature style is finger drumming on the strings.

The person with the pencils is his son, Mickey. Partyzant tells CNN that he and his son often perform together. They even played this piece at a big guitar competition in Germany a couple years ago. It sounds really cool.

Anyone with small children is familiar with Dr. Seuss. I promise you that you have never heard it quite like this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(GIRL READING DR. SEUSS BOOK IN TWO MINUTES)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: I'm going to read the news like that next time. The girl Xin Yan, who has a special talent for speed talking; she wowed the crowd by blasting through the book in just over two minutes. Next time you're in hurry to get through a story time with your kids or you grandkids, you might want to let them watch this video or just bring her over and let her do it.

I want you to listen to this now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm from Seattle and I starting hoeing when I was 16.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I got started in the sex industry was I was 16.

JAZZY, BUNNY RANCH: I've been in the game since I was 13.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: The business of legal prostitution and the women behind it. You'll hear their stories and why some are still haunted by their past. It is a special CNN investigation. That is ahead.

Plus on the heels of the biggest mob bust in U.S. history; you'll hear from a former mafia insider.

But first a Harvard educated lawyer is brought in to turn around Baltimore's troubled schools. Education contributor Steve Perry talks with him about how he's pulling it off.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEVE PERRY, CNN EDUCATION CONTRIBUTOR: What's a Harvard-educated lawyer doing running Baltimore city schools.

ANDRES ALONSO, SUPERINTENDENT, BALTIMORE PUBLIC SCHOOLS: Sense of insanity maybe.

PERRY: After working as deputy chancellor of the New York City's Department of Education, Andres Alonso took on Baltimore's troubles in 2007. The impoverished and crime-ridden city had gone through six school superintendents in six years.

PERRY: You're a bit of a swashbuckler. You come down here and you made it clear that things will never be the same.

ALONSO: I believe, as we should all believe, that every kid must learn, can learn, that you cannot use poverty as an excuse, that you have to do whatever is necessary to make sure that our kids learn.

PERRY: 75 percent of your principals are new?

ALONSO: That is correct. There are so many people in school that are invested, want to do what is right. We're an example. I mean, our teachers, they approved the contract where they will no longer get paid every year on the basis of seniority. They'll get paid every year on the basis of their ability to prove their effectiveness.

PERRY: (voice-over): The details of the evaluation system are still being worked out but it will be tied to student testing. Alonso also closed failing schools. Let students choose their schools and gave principals full control over the school's budgets.

KAREN WEBBER-NDOUR, PRINCIPAL, NATL. ACADEMY FOUNDATION H.S.: In order to retain the best teachers in the classrooms, you have to give them the respect and the tools to do their jobs. And so by Dr. Alonzo pushing the resources to me as a principal, I can push them down to the teachers so that they can get into the classrooms.

PERRY (on camera): Would you send your daughter to your school?

WEBBER-NDOUR: Absolutely. That's the measure.

PERRY (voice-over): Steve Perry, Baltimore.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: New information on the story that is just in just moments ago. It is the shooting that we have been hearing about in Washington state at a Wal-Mart there, Port Orchard, Washington state. Now this new information is just in to CNN. And it is from the (INAUDIBLE) county sheriff's office.

A spokesman there says there are initial reports of four people who were injured in a shooting outside of a Wal-Mart in Port Orchard, Washington. Four people. Our affiliates are reporting that two of those people are police officers, we don't know their conditions. But, again, that's what we're hearing. At least four people shot at a Wal-Mart in Washington state. We're following that breaking news.

Also breaking news out of Detroit to tell you about. A gunman is dead and four police officers injured after that gunman walked into a precinct on the west side of the city, opened fire, injuring them. They don't know who the gunman is at this time. They don't know his motive. But they know that four officers are injured and the gunman is dead. All of the officers expected to be OK. One is in surgery or has been in surgery and is now in critical condition but his prognosis looks good. We'll follow those breaking news for you here on CNN tonight.

The FBI is calling it the biggest mafia bust in history. More than 120 alleged mob figures arrested in a single day. There's a whole stack of charges including murder, racketeering, illegal gambling and narcotics trafficking. It brings to mind some of the infamous mafia stories that we've seen over the years. One of the most well-known is "Goodfellas." Remember that? The story of Henry Hill's rise and fall in the mafia over three decades. Take a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It didn't matter. It didn't mean anything. When I was broke, I would go out and rob some more. We ran everything. We paid off cops, we paid off lawyers, we paid off judges. Everybody had their hands out. Everything was for the taking. And now it's all over.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. That was the movie part of it. That was Ray Liotta, playing Henry Hill. But we've got the real Henry Hill joining us live right now. Henry, you were an associate of the Lucchese family, one of the seven families the FBI targeted in these busts. So Henry, I've got to ask you whether or not any of these guys - I'm going to ask you about these guys first, after this.

I want to know, why aren't you in protection right now. Why aren't you in witness protection because you said some things about some pretty bad people. Don't people want to kill you?

HENRY HILL, FORMER ORGANIZED CRIME MEMBER: Not anymore. I mean that was 30 years ago. The people I was involved with, they're all deceased or doing life sentences. I think they have their own problems right now, especially with the bust in New York. You know, with all those guys that got arrested. I knew a few of them. A few of them were my age. I was associated with a few of them.

LEMON: Who did you know?

HILL: Pardon.

LEMON: Who did you know? You said you knew a few of the 127? HILL: Yes. The names, I can't even go down the list, but there was a couple of guys that I had ran into and I had known in my dealings in New York.

LEMON: All right. So listen, authorities used informants to gather evidence for these busts and you became an informant in the '80s. So tell us what goes through your head when you flip on the other side, when you change sides?

HILL: Well, I mean, number one, I was finally at it at life, you know, I had tried to get out of it quite a few times and I wasn't able to, you know. You know, I -- the only thing I can say is, you know, I was fortunate. I was blessed that, you know, that I survived all these years, you know, and I'm still alive to be here, and you know and look out for my family and what have you.

LEMON: OK. So, listen, Henry, the information you gave the FBI resulted in 50 convictions, so would these recent busts, 127, will they actually hurt the mafia or do you think that more guys will just step up and take their place?

HILL: I mean, absolutely. I'm sure with the 127 they arrested, there's 249 people looking to take - you know, take their positions over. It's a thing - they're not going to - the mob is not going to go out of business. As long as there's gambling and illegal gambling, labor rackets, they're going to survive. The mob is going to survive.

But they put a good dent in them, you know. They'll have a big headache for a long time, you know, these guys that got arrested. And they've got a long - you know, a long road ahead of them, you know, but the government is right on top of them. They're a lot more sophisticated today than they were in 1980 when I went into the witness protection program.

LEMON: Hey, Henry.

HILL: Yes, sir.

LEMON: Let me ask you this. Have you noticed - you're not inside anymore. Have you noticed the mafia, has it changed with these busts? Are they slowly, you know, drip by drip, dwindling down, organized crime. Do you see a big change and do you see one day - I'm sure we never will end it, but do you see a big diminish in organized crime one day?

HILL: I don't think so. I don't think so. I mean as long as there's an illegal dollar to make - you know, for these guys to earn - the criminals are going to be there. They don't want to - they don't want to pick up a lunch pail and go to work.

You know, they want to live off, you know, the misery of other people and they're going to. And as long as that exists - but they put a good dent in them. You know, they put a real good dent in them.

LEMON: Yes. Hey, Henry, I've got to run. But yes or no, are you OK with being called a former mob boss? HILL: I was never a mob boss. I was - I was an informant, that's all.

LEMON: All right. Henry Hill, you're a brave man. Thank you so much. We appreciate you coming on CNN. OK. Best of luck. Stay safe.

HILL: Thank you very much for having me.

LEMON: Former Haitian dictator, Jean Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier says he's returned to Haiti to recover millions of dollars in frozen assets to help rebuild the country. We'll talk to an American attorney representing him and press him on his motives. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: All right. For a week now, the world has been asking why former dictator Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier has returned to Haiti. Now one of his lawyers says he is trying to reclaim millions from a frozen bank account that belongs to a family foundation. But supposedly it's to benefit Haiti and not Duvalier personally.

Well, we have that attorney now. His name is Ed Marger. He's joining us by phone. He is in Haiti now. So Ed, thanks for calling in here. Duvalier was accused of cleaning out Haiti's national treasury during his rule. Now, we hear money is the reason that he is back there. Can you see why that would make people suspicious?

Are we able to hear him? OK. Apparently we're not hearing him. We'll get him on the phone again. Ed Marger is the attorney for "Baby Doc" Duvalier down in Haiti. Coming back to the country after years of ruling and accused of clearing out the Treasury there, and now saying he is doing it, he is coming back now because he wants to take that money and he wants to give it back to Haiti. We'll see if we can get him on the other side of a break.

But first I want you to listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm from Seattle and I started whoring when I was 16.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I got started in the sex industry when I was 15.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I've been in the game since I was 13.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. Women at the Bunny Ranch are candid about legal prostitution but also share their disturbing past as well. You're going to hear that next. It is a CNN Special Investigation.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Prostitution is illegal in America with the exception of a few rural counties in Nevada. CNN's Amber Lyon has spent a year investigating the illegal trafficking of under aged girls in America. A brutal trade affecting up to 300,000 American children. She went to America's most famous legal brothel, the Moonlite Bunny Ranch. The women who work there do so freely and they make good money but as Amber discovered, many are still haunted by their past.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DENNIS HOF, MOONLITE BUNNY RANCH: Hi, honey. How are you? A lot of sexual trafficking going on in Las Vegas.

AMBER LYON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dennis Hof. He has been called America's pimp master general but he considers himself a businessman.

HOF: Hey, I love it.

LYON: And what he does is legal.

HOF: I have a show on HBO, so get out.

LYON: Hof is the owner of the most famous legal brothel in America. The Moonlite Bunny Ranch.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just sex, sex, sex.

LYON: It's the setting for HBO's long-running reality series "Cat House."

HOF: People love the sex business and I love being a part of it.

LYON: What he doesn't love are pimps.

(on camera): You think pimps just suck?

HOF: I think pimps are the worst leeches in the world. It's in Birmingham, it's in Charleston. It's everywhere. It's everywhere in America, there are pimps that are trying to grab the life of young girls and take them away from their families.

LYON: And what types of money are pimps pulling in?

HOF: Oh, tens of thousands of dollars a week.

LYON: A week?

HOF: Oh, yes. Absolutely.

LYON: What is it with under aged girls? Why do - do pimps make more money off them? Why are there so many under aged girls?

HOF: They're easily manipulated and they're young and they're naive. But the price they pay is - is horrendous.

LYON (voice-over): Hof says that he wants to set the record straight. Let the public know that life in his legal brothel is a far cry from the lives of most American prostitutes.

HOF: Come on, girls.

Ladies, this is Amber. She's here visiting, to spend some time with you, girls, wants to meet you all. (INAUDIBLE) schedule every month or two, come in to make the money, go back home and lead their lives.

Let me walk you around. Show you everything.

LYON (on camera): Yes.

HOF: There's just rooms down here and the girls decorate them like they want. We want people to be comfortable. L.E.D., plasma TVs.

LYON: Yes, this looks like a regular bedroom. What is this?

HOF: This is a swing.

LYON: I don't quite know how this works.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know, it's really easy. It's great.

LYON: All right. Let's move on to the next room.

Just boobs in the hallway.

(voice-over): The women here are in the safest and most profitable environment possible for a sex worker.

HOF: This is used one day a week for a couple of hours.

LYON: They're tested weekly for STDs. They have panic buttons in their rooms that they can hit if a client gets out of line and they also keep half of their cash. Some make six-figure incomes.

(on camera): So I know you guys are all of age now and you are in the business now legally, but how many of you were sex trafficked under aged when you started in the business?

Can you raise your hand real high? We have one, two, three -

(voice-over): So we counted hands and asked the women to tell us their stories.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm from Seattle and I started when I was 16.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I got started in the sex industry when I was 15.

"JAZZY," BUNNY RANCH GIRL: I've been in the game since I was 13.

LYON: All were affectively sex slaves, controlled by pimps and all were sold on-line.

"JAZZY": Virginity wasn't an option where I came from. You know, it was taken from you. So when you - when you get into the game, or when you, like, have somebody telling you, you know, you can sleep with me more money and you already lost your virginity, it's like, why not you? You know, it's like, why not? Sex is - it's not as sacred as it once was.

LYON: Amber Lyon, CNN, Carson City, Nevada.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: So, Amber Lyon joins me now here on CNN. Amber, we always hear about prostitution. People say, it should be legalized, it is the oldest profession in the world. But they don't understand the subtle nuances that you probably learned throughout your year of investigating.

LYON: You know, as a society, Don, people tend to demean prostitutes, call them whores and hoes (ph). And what they don't really realized is that the majority of prostitutes started in the business as underaged sex trafficking victims like those girls you just saw on the Bunny Ranch.

LEMON: At this ranch, there is - I don't know, there are no pimps at ranches, right? Are there pimps? Is that the new age? I mean, explain to me.

LYON: OK. What's going on - what we looked at in this documentary called "Selling the Girl Next Door" is really what's going on with sex trafficking, modern day sex trafficking of under aged girls. We found a majority of it is taking place on line. And also that a lot of these girls, some estimate up to 300,000 of them, Don, are American girls being sold on the streets of America.

And when you think of trafficking, you think this is happening to foreign girls who were in other countries. That is just not the case.

LEMON: In this city, Atlanta, it is one of the worst. This is what I want to say, the girls, who, I know they have some sad stories about their past, the ones that end up at the Bunny Ranch, that's probably - that's the best place that they could end up. The ones who end up on the street. You know, worst.

LYON: You know, that's what Dennis Hof was telling us when we talked with Dennis because he said that, you know, he feels that his show makes people think that all prostitutes are living that way, where they have panic buttons, get tested for STDs and get to keep some of their money. But the sad truth is that the majority of prostitutes out on the street are treated as slaves. They are forced to be out there by pimps and they don't get to keep any of the money that they make.

LEMON: It looks very interesting. Amber, thank you very much. I will be watching. Amber Lyon, thanks again. "Selling the Girl Next Door," it airs tonight at 8:00 Eastern, immediately following this show, on CNN, 8:00 p.m. Eastern, "Selling the Girl Next Door."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Breaking news here on CNN. These are the first pictures out of Port Orchard, Washington, of that Wal-Mart, where four people have been wounded by a gunman. Now, we are being told by our affiliate, KIRO, that it is an officer-involved shooting, and that there are two officers who have been shot here. We don't know their injuries.

But again, according to a spokesperson there in the county, four people have been injured at a shooting at a Wal-Mart in Port Orchard, Washington. Again, these pictures coming in from our affiliate, KIRO. Look at the scene there. Look at the officers there on the scene and of course, we don't have control of these pictures.

They are coming in from our affiliate's chopper. But you can see how they cordoned off the very familiar parking lot, all of them look the same really around Wal-Marts in the country. So they have cordoned off that parking lot there. They are looking again, I'm sure, investigating to see exactly what happened. We are also being told these are reports. This is not CNN's reporting but we are hearing from our affiliate that they believe that there are two suspects who are in custody in this shooting in Washington state.

Again, we are going to follow this developing story. The first pictures there of that shooting. Again, that story and the one in Detroit where four police officers were shot as well. We'll update you on that in just moments.

OK. Let's get back to this story. For a week now the world has been asking why former dictator, Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier has returned to Haiti. Now, one of his lawyers says he is trying to reclaim millions, millions from a frozen bank account that belongs to a family foundation.

But supposedly, it is to benefit Haiti and not Duvalier personally. Supposedly. Well, we have that attorney. His name is Ed Marger and he is joining us by phone. He is in Haiti now. So Ed, Duvalier was accused of cleaning out Haiti's national treasury during his rule. Now, we're hearing that money is behind the reason that he is back. Can't you see why this looks suspicious to people?

ED MARGER, "BABY DOC'S" ATTORNEY: Well, one of the reasons that he is back is not only money but to help the people of Haiti. One of the ways of helping is to get the money that are presently in Switzerland released through some transparent organizations such as Ernst & Young or Deloitte so that they can handle, not only his money but money from other donors and get something done in Haiti.

LEMON: So, Mr. Marger, let me ask you this question because this is what people want to know. There is a new Swiss law which goes into effect on the first of February that would make it easier for Haitian authorities to access a frozen account all on their own. So if they can show that they couldn't prosecute Duvalier and they couldn't until a week ago, so won't Duvalier's return actually make it harder for Haiti to get that money now?

MARGER: Well, when you say, get the money to Haiti, who is the money to go to? If Haiti is going to get the money, does that mean it get to the people? The purpose of the money is to actually get it to the people to use, to reconstruct the damage that was done by the earthquake.

Giving it to the government is the last thing in the world that we would like to see happen to that money.

LEMON: OK. I've got to ask you this question. I have to put it bluntly. Millions of people are suffering in Haiti right now and many would place a lot of the blame on your client. So what do you say to people who think that he is back to rape the country?

MARGER: You know, it is an amazing thing that they blame him for the ills of the country. First of all, there was an earthquake. Second of all, there was an (INAUDIBLE) and third of all, that this present government. He hasn't been there for 25 years. The last stability in the government, the last stability in the state, the last stability in Haiti was occasioned by Duvalier.

What does he got to do with anything that is bad that has happened today. He is coming to correct it, not to exacerbate it.

LEMON: OK. I thank you, sir. Obviously, we are not going to solve this in this conversation. We're getting close to the top of the hour but Ed Marger is an attorney for Jean Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier, who has returned to Haiti. Again, thank you very much. We'll keep in touch with him.

Also, we're going to follow our breaking news as well. Coming out of Washington state, four people involved in a shooting at a Wal-Mart there. And then four officers wounded in a shooting in Detroit, Michigan when he walked into a police station, a gunman walked into a police station and injured those police officers, the gunman is now dead and police are trying to figure out his motives.

I'm Don Lemon at the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta. CNN presents "Selling the Girl Next Door" begins right now.