Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Police Investigate Gruesome Florida Case; Protests in Middle East; New Jersey's Rising Political Star; Pakistanis Demanding American Be Put on Trial For Murder; Danny Bonaduce Discusses Drug Addiction; Two ICE Agents Are Shot In Mexico; Many Towns Surrounding Juarez, Mexico Abandoned Due To Violence
Aired February 16, 2011 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Big developments today. I'm going to take you to Florida live in just a couple of minutes, what we're learning about these gruesome, gruesome developments in this case of a family, these little adopted children, one of whom found dead, one injured in the father's truck. And there has been a court appearance and a news conference today. We are going to get you all of that here in just a moment.
Also, we're going to get to the case of an American in jail right now in Pakistan, which has become really this international incident. And I want you to listen real quickly here. This is our CNN foreign affairs correspondent, Jill Dougherty, really pressing for answers today at the State Department briefing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
P.J. CROWLEY, U.S. ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE FOR PUBLIC AFFAIRS: He is a U.S. diplomat, currently incarcerated in Pakistan, who has diplomatic immunity and should be released.
JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: And what exactly was his job?
CROWLEY: I can go back -- he has technical -- provides technical services to -- a member of the administrative and technical staff of the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Hmm. So we're digging for answers there.
Also, we will get to the new details of Charlie Sheen's rehab. You know, we decided when it comes to addiction and celebrities calling into radio shows, it takes one to know one. So, Danny Bonaduce will be joining me live on the show here in just a little bit.
But first to that gruesome story out of Florida, and it begins with this 10-year-old boy. He was found dripping in toxic chemicals inside this old pickup truck, his adoptive father unconscious outside just on the side of the highway, and a body in the bed of the truck. This story is still developing here as we speak. And as you hear these details, it's going to sound a little more fitting to be a horror movie. But as the investigation unfolds, folks, the details get more and more disturbing.
According to police, for at least two adopted children, this nightmare was all too real, and their adoptive parent the monster. West Palm Beach police just debriefed reporters, but we have to warn you here, these details, they are graphic and they're troubling.
So, now that we got that out there, I want to go straight to John Zarrella in Miami.
And, John, first things first. Look, police find this red pest control pickup truck on the side of the highway and inside they find this 10-year-old boy soaked in these chemicals, father on the side of the road unconscious. Later, hazmat finds the body of the little boy's twin sister in the bag in the bed of the truck. And right now, there's this family court hearing happening. What are you learning today?
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN MIAMI BUREAU CHIEF, yes. And as you pointed out, some very, very gruesome details, and more coming out at this family court hearing today, which was held in Miami, a circuit court judge.
The mother, Carmen Barahona, she was at this hearing as well. She came in. She had her face covered throughout the entire -- as she walked in and sat down. And let's put it this way. There are two other kids involved as well. They Barahonas in all adopted four children, ages 7 to 11 years old, the one boy and his twin sister -- the boy and his twin sister and two others unrelated to them.
Now, those two children were taken from the home by police late on Monday. And the hearing was held today to determine whether they should be removed and put back into foster care. We're still waiting to hear what happens there.
But at this hearing today, the disturbing testimony that came out was from some of it that the boy and his sister were bound, their hands bound, and were only -- the ties only taken off for them to eat. And the sister was treated even worse, was locked in the bathroom for the entire day.
BALDWIN: Oh.
ZARRELLA: And -- yes.
Now, a call went to a hot line, to the abuse hot line of the Department of Children and Families on the 10th of February. On the 11th, an investigator went to the house, but only talked to the mother. That was last Friday. Didn't see the kids, didn't talk to the kids.
At this point, we have no idea if the little girl was still alive at that point. The judge asked, well, how come you didn't talk to the children?
BALDWIN: Right.
ZARRELLA: And the investigator said I was going to go back on Monday. And the judge says, you don't work on weekends? And she said, no, I wasn't allowed to -- her response was she was not allowed to do that.
So, at this point, we still do not know when the little girl died or how she died. The medical examiner still has to unravel that mystery -- Brooke.
BALDWIN: But just to underline -- to underscore your point, that call came in about the duct tape days prior to this incident.
ZARRELLA: Right.
BALDWIN: Do we know who made -- who picked up the phone, John, who called that hot line?
ZARRELLA: Here's what's interesting about that. Apparently, Carmen Barahona, Jorge's wife, has a biological daughter and a biological 7-year-old granddaughter.
The granddaughter was told, shh, according to testimony today, hush up, don't tell about the family's secret. But she did tell other friends about it. And some one of her friends or a parent made the call to Children and Family Services about, hey, you need to go see what's going on at this house.
And so that's why the investigator was sent out. So it was the biological granddaughter, according to testimony today, that spilled the beans.
BALDWIN: So, what about -- we have to ask, what about this 10- year-old boy who according to this probable cause affidavit was the one found sitting in clothing soaked with this unknown chemical? How's he doing?
ZARRELLA: Yes. He's still in very, very bad shape. He's been transported to a premier burn unit, Jackson Memorial Hospital. Apparently, he did have some kidney failure. But because he is a ward of the state, the hospital says that, while he is there, they cannot tell us anything about his condition.
BALDWIN: So let's talk about the father, John Barahona. In fact, we just got a mug shot. Let's throw the picture up, guys, if we can. This is the mug shot of this father here. Barahona -- as we mentioned, this was a pest control truck that was on the side of the road. He was an exterminator. He's in intensive care at West Palm Hospital.
But police have charged him with felony aggravated child abuse of this 10-year-old adopted son. What are you learning about this father, John? ZARRELLA: Well, all we know is that people have said who live in -- from Miami -- now, he's from Miami, although, of course, we know the vehicle was found in West Palm Beach.
BALDWIN: Yes.
ZARRELLA: Neighbors have said very little contact with these people. They never came out. They only heard the kids playing on weekends when they were supposedly in the pool. We don't know which kids were allowed in the pool.
But very little is known about the man, other than he was very quiet, never, again, had very much to say. In a sworn affidavit today, though, to police, he said that he was -- quote -- "distraught" over the death of his daughter and intended to commit suicide. That's why he pulled over on the grassy area of the road, supposedly, according to him, poured gasoline all over himself and over his son, but then, because his son was there, he couldn't light the match and kill himself.
So that is what he apparently told police. They don't believe him, by the way, because it wasn't gasoline they say that was poured all over the boy.
BALDWIN: Yes, though that was the part that struck me the most when I read this probable cause affidavit. He talks about giving this kid sleeping pills, then dousing himself with the gasoline and decides, hang on, I don't want to kill myself in front of my son because he's present.
(CROSSTALK)
ZARRELLA: Yes.
BALDWIN: Anyway, let's talk what Mark Riordan with the Florida Department of Children and Family Services said to reporters just now. Let's listen and we will talk on the other side.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK RIORDAN, FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES: We have had a prior history with the family, yes. I can't characterize the nature of those investigations, but we have had prior involvement with the family.
QUESTION: How many call-outs?
(CROSSTALK)
RIORDAN: Several times we have been out to the home.
QUESTION: Recently?
RIORDAN: Over the course of their foster relationship and since adoption.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: So, John, what does that mean, prior call-outs? You mentioned the one, what, involving the teacher and the kids in duct tape. What else have you learned, anything?
ZARRELLA: Yes, they're not going to say much of anything. The Florida Department of Children and Families will not comment. They're not saying anything about what these other calls out to the house were about, were for, over what -- over a period of time, supposedly over the course of the last two to four, five years.
And again, these children were ages seven to 11. And they had adopted them all within the last five years or so. But I believe they were foster children, some of them, the older ones, even before that.
BALDWIN: I'm sitting here thinking about those other two kids as well that were adopted.
John Zarrella, thanks so much for turning this around so quickly for us there in Miami.
ZARRELLA: Yes. Sure.
BALDWIN: Thank you. Appreciate it.
Now listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my gosh. Oh, my gosh.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you all right?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. I'm --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Middle of a sandstorm.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: It has been called -- look at this. It has been called the most dangerous city on the planet, a drug cartel's playground. So coming up, an up-close look at these ghost towns surrounding Juarez just south of the U.S.-Mexican border.
Also, more protests exploding across the Middle East today, the deadly chaos in Libya and Bahrain sparking fears around the world. The big question, who goes down first, the protesters or their leaders?
Also, this. Guys, roll over to that tweet and take a look at this. This is from one of the "New York Times" correspondents. He's in Bahrain. tweeted: "Rushed to village here in Bahrain where clashes taking place. Wore my tear-gas-quick-escape running shoes, but all quiet."
We are going to speak with Nick Kristof live next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: Welcome back.
Today, the wave of unrest intensifies all across the Middle East and North Africa. Take a look at this map here; this will help you understand this. It was all unleashed by the uprisings both in Tunisia and in Egypt. At least a dozen nations are in either a state of reform or in a state of unrest. Protests boiled over in Bahrain, Libya and Yemen.
And that's where I'm going to take you first, to Yemen, where it is day six now of protests there. The situation has turned explosive when thousands of police confronted this massive crowd protesting against their president of 32 years, mind you. Witnesses say one person was killed today during a protest in the city of Aden, the first reported death in Yemen since all these protests began. They were a couple of days ago.
Next to Libya -- at the same time, you have Libya. This is Egypt's neighbor. The anger is exploding over the arrest of a popular human rights activist. Hundreds of protesters and police clashed in eastern Libya calling for reforms from -- for longtime ruler Muammar Gadhafi.
And in the midst of all this widespread, unprecedented unrest, you have Bahrain. It's this emerging nation. This is the critical focal point because it's a tiny island nation in the Persian Gulf. And it's a key U.S. ally. Demonstrators there, you see them, this is day three of protests in Bahrain.
And Sunnis and Shiites are demanding a new constitution and a word we keep hearing over and over in this part of the world, democratic change. They are promising to bring more to the streets after two protesters there were killed in clashes with police.
And thousands gathered today for a peaceful funeral procession for one of the protesters killed.
And I want to bring in Nick Kristof, a columnist with "The New York Times." He is there in the thick of things in Bahrain.
And, Nick, I have been following your Twitter account today, and your last tweet, as of two hours ago, you were saying it's all quiet for now. I know it's about 11:15 there at night your time. What are you seeing?
NICHOLAS KRISTOF, COLUMNIST, "THE NEW YORK TIMES": Well, the central square that the protesters have turned into their version of Tahrir Square is still going strong. It's going to be going all night. It's the Pearl Roundabout.
And normally it's a place where cars are going around. And now it is the biggest theater in Bahrain. You have I don't know how many countless thousands of people who are there. There's trucks that have delivered food to keep the protesters going. People are going around chanting, singing. There is art displays. There's information centers. It's really an extraordinary thing.
And the protesters say they're going to stay there until they get the democratic changes that they're calling for.
BALDWIN: Help me put this in perspective for our viewers, because Bahrain and what happens there is hugely important for us here in the United States. I mentioned it's a key ally, it's an important location, as it's an island for U.S. shipping and our military strategy.
So my question is how could the protests there in Bahrain around the Pearl square that you mentioned affect you and me and people watching here in the U.S.?
KRISTOF: Well, I think that the Bahrain government is going to be telling American officials, sort of whispering in our ear, look out, this is Iranian-inspired. These are fundamentalists who are out to challenge American interests.
And I sure hope we don't buy that line of argument that is very similar to the line of argument that Hosni Mubarak used, that, after me, all those Islamists will come to power.
And, you know, in truth after talking to an awful lot of these demonstrators, looking at their signs, I don't see any hint of anti- Americanism. Removing the Fifth Fleet's access isn't something that anybody is talking about. They know that it brings huge economic benefits.
And -- but at the end of the day, there is a real possibility that this regime is going to change and that Shiites will end up in charge. And Saudi Arabia is petrified of that happening because it has a large Shiite minority that it represses as well. So this could reverberate through much of the Gulf.
BALDWIN: That's interesting, though, that you point out that there is no anti-American sentiment at least there in Bahrain, but a lot of this comes town to the rulers and the ruled and that dynamic is very much in the midst of being forever changed across the Middle East, across Northern Africa, and there's really no turning back.
So there really is one question of what will be the outcome of these uprisings? This isn't just a revolution of a few countries, but, really, if you look at this geographically, this is a whole region. What are your thoughts?
KRISTOF: That's right.
And there's -- in Tahrir Square, you really did see on and off strains of anti-Americanism and some real demands that America kind of step up to the plate and support the protesters. And there was a lot of attention on what America was thinking.
You run into that much, much less here in Bahrain. There's much more of a sense that the protesters are going to rise and fall on their own merits and according to whatever the government decides to do to them.
But, you know, one of the lessons of history is that protest is contagious, whether it was 1776 and then the French Revolution in 1789 or the revolutions of 1848 or of 1989.
BALDWIN: Or it's 2011, right . You're exactly right.
KRISTOF: Or it's 2011. It's infectious.
And when people see people in Tunisia and Egypt overthrowing their repressive governments, then they think -- they always have their grievances, but they think, hey, maybe we could do that too.
BALDWIN: Yes, it is amazing. It is contagious. A lot of people have been talking lately about the domino effect.
Nick Kristof, "New York Times" columnist, Nick, stay safe. Thank you so much for calling in from Bahrain. I appreciate it.
And now to this just in to us here at CNN. You know this name, Bill Burton. Bill Burton is leaving the White House. He has been the deputy press secretary since President Obama took office. He says he will take on a new job as a political consultant, so a lot of movement in the press office this week. Today was day one for Jay Carney, his first official White House briefing as the new press secretary. And we will talk a little about that and what he might have had that was percolating next hour with our Joe Johns in "Political Pop."
But now to this. Chris Christie says he's not -- N-O-T -- running for president. Fine, OK, we get it. But he did just give this pretty big speech. And Christie he not only spoke to his base, but he had some choice words for President Obama.
Jessica Yellin listened to the whole thing. She's standing by. She's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: I want to take you to Washington now.
And, you know, it's a pretty tough ticket to get in D.C., this afternoon at least, a ticket to hear this guy, Chris Christie, New Jersey's Republican governor in office barely a year. And he has already proven to be a new conservative rock star, kind of a bit of a bull in a china shop, talks about speaking the truth, talks about doing big things. Here he is. I want to play some of this for you speaking this afternoon to a sold-out crowd.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: I heard the president's State of the Union speech and it was two weeks after mine. And he said America was about doing the big things.
Now, listen, I'm not saying he copied me.
(LAUGHTER)
CHRISTIE: I have seen some writing about that. And that's not what I'm saying.
But I think it's important to note it, because of what he says the big things are. He says the big things are high-speed rail. The big things are high-speed Internet access for almost 80 percent of America or something by some date, a million electric cars on the road by some date.
Ladies and gentlemen, that is the candy of American politics. Those are not the big things, because let me guarantee you something. If we don't fix the real big things, then there will be no electric cars on the road, going to be no high-speed Internet access, or if there is, you're not going to be able to afford to get on it. We're not going to be able to care about the niceties of life, the investments.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: Jessica Yellin, our national correspondent in Washington, Jessica, I know you listened to the speech today. And he talks about candy. I guess he's saying he could bring the bran. How is --
(CROSSTALK)
(LAUGHTER)
BALDWIN: What is it the certain je ne sais quoi about Chris Christie that really seems to dazzle so many conservatives out there?
JESSICA YELLIN, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, first of all, he's so straight-talking. He communicates in a way so few politicians do.
But the other piece of it is that he campaigned on this big promise to slash spending and then he went into office and made good on those promises. He has actually gone after sacred cows. He's taken on pensions for public workers, which are usually untouchable, now going after teachers unions and trying to renegotiate. He's made cuts across the board to close an $11 billion budget gap. And that's made him a little bit unpopular -- well, more than a little bit unpopular among some in his state, but he's taking the big risks.
And right now, Brooke, for example, New Jersey's huge debt and because this governor didn't pay the pension system last year because they're broke, that state's bond rating was downgraded. That's a measure of the state's creditworthiness and has huge potential consequences for business. So, he says, look, I'm making hard choices when few other people have before. And that's why he's gotten so much attention.
BALDWIN: So as I said, though, Jess, he's been in office barely a year, yet people asked him the question we're tending to ask people these days. Would he run for the White House? What did he say? YELLIN: Yes. He gives -- he gave an emphatic no and he has consistently said no. But I should point out as soon as he finished his speech and took questions, the very first question is, will you run for president?
He joked today that the only way anyone is going to believe he's not going to run is if he really does commit suicide, which is a little harsh, but --
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: That's kind of morbid.
(LAUGHTER)
YELLIN: Kind of his way. He just throws it out there.
And the reason the media keeps pressing this question is because he's so straight-talking and says things like that. I just pulled out one piece of his speech to give you a little more flavor of his style. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTIE: Let me tell you, what is the truth? What's the truth that nobody is talking about? Here's the truth that nobody is talking about. You're going to have to raise the retirement age for Social Security. Oh, I just said it. And I'm still standing here.
(LAUGHTER)
CHRISTIE: I did not vaporize into the carpeting, and I said it.
We have to reform Medicare, because it costs too much, and it is going to bankrupt us. Once again, lightning did not come through the windows and strike me dead.
(LAUGHTER)
CHRISTIE: And we have to fix Medicaid, because it's not only bankrupting the federal government. It's bankrupting every state government. There you go.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
YELLIN: So, you see, he's not your typical politician.
BALDWIN: He's kind of funny, Jess.
YELLIN: Right. Yes. And he is in person too when you have sort of more one-on-one kind of thing. He just shoots from the hip. And the bottom line is, because his brand is candor, if he did end up running for president, after all these denials, it could kind of tarnish his image.
BALDWIN: Yes. If he says no, we will take it. It's a no. YELLIN: Right.
BALDWIN: Jessica Yellin, we will leave it there. Thank you.
An American behind bars right now in Pakistan, and now Senator John Kerry, he has just left there. He's been trying to help get this guy out. But the American is accused of murder. And now the tensions are throwing a big, big wrench in this whole relationship, very important one, between the U.S. and a country where terrorists are believed to be hiding. We will talk about that next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: One of the hot stories developing right now surrounds an American held in jail in Pakistan. His name is Raymond Davis. He has admitted, yes, he shot two Pakistanis to death last month in Lahore, but he says it was all in self-defense.
What's more here, Washington claims Raymond Davis has diplomatic immunity since he was working for the U.S. Consulate and was holding a diplomatic passport.
Now, let me bring you up to today, today's developments. Senator John Kerry visited Islamabad all in this effort to get Davis released. It was a quick visit. In fact, he's already on his way back home, back to the United States.
And just this morning, the U.S. Justice Department announced a criminal probe into the killings that triggered what has really become a diplomatic mess.
To help me sort all of this out, I want to bring in CNN national security analyst Peter Bergen.
And, Peter, I just want to begin with the latest developments, which is the fact that we know Senator Kerry is already on his way home. What are you hearing about the trip, any breakthroughs here?
PETER BERGEN, CNN TERRORISM ANALYST: I don't think there are any breakthroughs.
This is an issue which the Pakistanis feel very strongly about. The foreign minister has -- says that part of the reason that he resigned or was forced out of office was his position that -- that Davis did not have diplomatic immunity. This is a huge story in Pakistan. Feelings are running very high about this.
And I think it's worth pointing out that the U.S. government when diplomats have committed crimes in the United States haven't always said that you have blanket diplomatic immunity. There was a case years back of a Georgian diplomat who ran over a teenage girl in DuPont Circle in Washington, D.C. The Georgian government allowed diplomatic immunity to be lifted, and the U.S. prosecuted him, he went to jail and then eventually served time in a Georgian prison.
The point being in the case of something that can be construed as not self-defense but a murder, which is the way the Pakistanis construe it, diplomatic immunity doesn't necessarily have to be invoked in the sense if there's an agreement between the Pakistanis and the Americans to let this proceed. That's not happening right now.
BALDWIN: That's one of the big questions, obviously Peter. You mentioned that the Georgian diplomat in the situation in Washington, D.C., now we know the situation is flip flopped with the American in Pakistan. It's not clear exactly who Davis is in terms of his status. A diplomatic or was he a defense contractor.
I want to play some sound for you. This is when our own Jill Dougherty sort of pushed back a little bit with P.J. Crowley at the state department on that very issue. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Is he a contractor? Is he a, you know, consulate employee?
P.J. CROWLEY, STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESPERSON: He is a U.S. diplomat currently incarcerated in Pakistan who has diplomatic immunity and should be released.
DOUGHERTY: And what exactly was his job?
CROWLEY: I can go back -- you know, he has, you know, technical -- provides technical services to the -- a member of the administrative and technical staff of the U.S. embassy in Islamabad.
DOUGHERTY: Is it a correct --
CROWLEY: I'm not going to go any further than that.
DOUGHERTY: Just one thing. The reports say that he was carrying a gun. Obviously he shot the two guys.
CROWLEY: I think that's a safe assumption.
DOUGHERTY: Is that standard operating procedure, that diplomats carry guns?
CROWLEY: Again, there are people with diplomatic status in countries around the world who are authorized to carry weapons.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BALDWIN: So, Peter, you heard P.J. and you could hear the voice of Jill sort of trying to push back. If you could help me read between the lines there, what do you learn from that conversation?
BERGEN: Well, you know, one possibility is that Davis might have been assigned to the bureau of diplomatic security, which as a -- you know, as some kind of consultant, adviser. That would -- most diplomats aren't necessarily armed, that's very unusual, even in a country like Pakistan. But, you know, if you're part of the group of people that is designed to provide safety not only to the American embassy but American consulates and indeed American citizens living in Pakistan, you know, that's a reason you might be carrying a weapon. So that would be a sort of -- you know, what's puzzling is if that's the case, why not just say it?
BALDWIN: Why not say it? Why not be transparent? And all of this happening at a time with all these uprisings across the Middle East. It's a precarious situation. A lot of people watching the U.S. here very, very closely. Peter Bergen, thanks so much for calling in.
Coming up next here, drugs, rehab, wild porn star parties -- this is all part of Charlie Sheen's life in the spotlight. So what is next for the actor, and what's next for one of the most popular shows right now on TV?
I will speak with someone who has been through, I don't know if he would say all of it. Here he is, Danny Bonaduce, joining me next. I can promise you this conversation will be interesting. Right, Bonaduce? He laughs.
DANNY BONADUCE, RADIO SHOW HOST: Oh, yes, I guarantee it.
BALDWIN: He laughs. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: Trending today, private struggles in the public eye. I'm talking about Charlie Sheen now this full-blown poster boy for celebrity addiction. His wild exploits are all over the headlines, celebrity gossip blogs, entertainment news shows, including reports of that drug-fueled hotel rampage in New York, domestic violence charges, divorce.
His latest reported binge last month ended with an emergency hospital visit, and his sitcom, hugely popular sitcom, "Two and a half Men" now on hiatus. So those are the headlines, you got that.
But the backstory here is celebrity battling private demons in the very public sphere. We decided to bring in a man who has been there, done that, got caught in the brutal throes of addiction under the bright lights of Tinsel Town, and he is Danny Bonaduce. He's been a child star, reality TV star and radio talk show host on 94.1 WYSP in Philadelphia. But at one time, Danny Bonaduce, I'm correct in saying that you were an addict on the rocks.
So good to have you here, sir. Nice to meet you through the TV. Let me just first ask you, how many years have you been sober?
BONADUCE: Well, sober has so many meanings. How long has it been since I've seen cocaine? It's been 20 years.
BALDWIN: Seen cocaine, 20 years?
BONADUCE: Yes, but I mean you're being overly polite to me -- I'm sorry?
BALDWIN: How many years has it been since you have done any such drug that you would have considered yourself addicted to?
BONADUCE: Well, I still drink occasionally and at points people were telling me I was addicted to alcohol and at points I believed them, and I still socially drink. I want to correct you on one thing. If Charlie Sheen is the poster boy for celebrity addicts, I'm out of a job. I'm the expert on celebrity addicts.
BALDWIN: So you want to be the poster boy? You prefer the poster boy title?
BONADUCE: There's got to be a reason for CNN to call Bonaduce.
BALDWIN: We'll call Charlie Sheen number two poster boy. I want to talk about your story and talk about you. For people that can't empathize about your situation, Sheen's situation, talk to me about when you hit rock bottom. How was it?
BONADUCE: I was homeless. After being on "The Partridge Family" and being world famous, I lived in my car behind a dumpster that no longer exists. I used to live behind Gramman's Chinese for two years in an automobile. I would wake up in the morning and wander in wiping my eyes, and people would go, hey, aren't you Danny Partridge? And take pictures and get my autograph and had no idea I lived right behind in the car. So I guess that would be rock bottom.
BALDWIN: I guess that would be rock bottom. I want you to take that experience and I want you to listen. I'm sure you've heard it. This is when Charlie Sheen called yet morning and went on for many, many minutes on Dan Patrick's radio show. Let's listen and then we'll talk on the other side.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHARLIE SHEEN, ACTOR: People kind of know that I've been in some problems lately, this and that. I'm sort of notorious for, you know, surfacing, you know, going deep undercover, deep underground. So I said stay away from the crack, which I think is pretty good advice, unless you can manage it socially, Dan. If you can manage it socially, then go for it. But not a lot of people can, you know.
DAN PATRICK, RADIO SHOW HOST: Did you think you could?
SHEEN: Sorry?
PATRICK: Did you think you could?
SHEEN: Yes, yes, but that kind of blew up in my face. Like an exploding crack pipe, Dan.
PATRICK: You want to go back to work?
SHEEN: Oh, yes, man. I mean I'm a man of my word. I have a contract. I heal really quickly, but I also unravel pretty quickly. So get me right now, guys. I'm here and I'm ready. They're not. Bring it, you know.
PATRICK: Best piece of advice you've gotten since you stopped partying.
SHEEN: Stay like this, right? Just stay like this. You know, today I'll stay like this.
PATRICK: All right.
PATRICK: I'm having a ball.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Danny Bonaduce, you hear a guy saying he's managing or one could manage crack socially. Do you cringe or do you laugh? Is this a joke?
BONADUCE: I clearly know that that's a joke. Having been addicted to crack, nobody manages -- it's like, well, if you can keep your heroin addiction social. It's a joke. No crack addict could ever manage a social crack addiction. It's the devil. You're addicted. It's everything your parents told you drugs were going to be. It's the worst thing ever.
It was a joke, maybe in poor taste, but I got it immediately. I don't know if you can manage your crack socially. Anybody that's ever had a problem with real serious addiction where it owned you knew he was kidding. I knew he was kidding.
BALDWIN: And I know you called it on your radio show. I guess once upon a time he said he was going in rehab for 90 days and you said heck, no, he's not. Apparently he's in home rehab. I want you, given the fact you're the number one poster child for this kind of addiction, I want your advice in terms of what Charlie Sheen's friends, maybe if he was sitting next to you, what you would tell him. Do you have some advice?
BONADUCE: Well, sure --
BALDWIN: Hold your thought. Hold your thought. I'll take you over the break. We'll be right back. Hold your thought.
BONADUCE: Thank you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: OK. Let's bring this back, continuing my conversation with Danny Bonaduce. Danny, the floor is yours. What advice do you give to Charlie Sheen right now?
BONADUCE: Well, first of all, I have to know what he's up to, and I'm not positive. When I knew Charlie, his big mistake, whether you have a moral barometer with this or not, his big getting caught mistake was writing a personal check for $57,000 for the services of illicit -- for prostitutes to Heidi Fleiss. And the question rears its ugly head, but who pays hookers with a check, and what do you put in the memo box?
So then, now I haven't seen Charlie in a very long time but he's dangling this right in front of our face. He lives right next door to two very good friends of mine, the guy that actually called 911 specifically against Charlie's wishes. Charlie says please don't call 911. But the doctor said I can't take your word. I am morally bound to call 911.
Well, that's a gated community. Everybody who goes in or out, the guard has to know their first or last names. When people go running out of Charlie Sheen's house, there's a guard watching them go. Charlie is dangling all of this in front of our faces.
BALDWIN: He goes to the hospital because the doctor calls. We had him on CNN to talk to him about it. You're right, we don't know his situation. But let's just say pick a vice, and there could be a plethora. What advice do you give him?
BONADUCE: There shouldn't be a plethora, a vice, that's a big problem. You know, if it looks like rain, I take umbrella. If it looks like death, I'm going to carry me condolences card in my pocket. If I believe what I hear about Charlie Sheen, he's at death's door, but he's the poster child for stamina.
I would say, Charlie, keep something in the reserve tank. You're going to need it. I wouldn't say spend everything all in one place. Why don't you put a little bit away and not rent the mansion next door for $75,000 a month to keep women of ill repute, if you will. And certainly don't dangle it in front of the public.
CBS has a responsibility. Are they going to be the guys that pay $2 million a week and Charlie ends up dead, or are they going to be the one that fires Charlie Sheen for this behavior and because he's so distraught Charlie ends up dead? CBS is the one aside from Charlie with the most to lose. This is a precarious situation. I would say settle down, cash your checks, and do what you want on your own time.
BALDWIN: We'll watch and wait. Danny Bonaduce, thanks for talking to me. I appreciate it.
BONADUCE: It was my absolute pleasure.
BALDWIN: Nice to meet you, thank you.
BONADUCE: Thank you very much, Brooke.
BALDWIN: It has been called the most dangerous city on the planet, a drug cartel's playground. Coming up next, an up close look at the ghost towns surrounding Juarez just south of the U.S.-Mexico border. We'll take you inside. Stay right there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: Outrage today from the White House after the ambush of two American customs and immigration agents or ICE just north of Mexico city. One agent is dead. The other is recovering after being shot in the arm and leg. Their vehicle was attacked on this lonely stretch of roadway in Mexico. Now we're hearing from President Barack Obama calling the parents of the slain agents and offering his own condolences. In fact, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney today updating the investigation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAY CARNEY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: You should know that the U.S. law enforcement agencies are working closely with the Mexican authorities to investigate the shooting and that the resources of the federal government are at the disposal of our Mexican partners in the investigation.
And today Secretary Napolitano and the attorney general, Eric Holder, are formalizing a joint task force between the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice that will leverage the investigative capabilities of both agencies to work with Mexico in tracking down perpetrators.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Now, we often hear about the drug-related violence in the border city of Juarez, Mexico. We've talked about that a lot. The city considered more dangerous than Iraq or Afghanistan. But look at this map, because people in the town right across the border from Ft. Hancock, Texas, say it is even more dangerous where they live. CNN's Thelma Gutierrez looks at how cartel violence is forcing all these families to flee.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We traveled an hour east of El Paso to a desolate, dangerous place on the border called the "neutral zone."
GUTIERREZ (on camera): So we're in this area right between the United States and Mexico. Mexico is few feet away, but would you never know it because we're in the middle of a dust storm.
GUTIERREZ (voice-over): We can't see a thing but the top cop in Ft. Hancock, Texas tells us they can see us.
GUTIERREZ (on camera): You were saying that we're probably being watched right now but who?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Local law enforcement from the opposite side, cartel members, individuals that have interest in this particular area.
GUTIERREZ (voice-over): This area is called Juarez Valley. It's a strategic location dotted with small towns along the Rio Grande on the Mexican side of the border. Prime real estate for the cartels because it's close to the United States, a major highway and the railroad line.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's easy access in and out. GUTIERREZ: The battle for warring cartels to control the Juarez valley has been fierce. People here call this "the valley of death."
GUTIERREZ (on camera): On the other side of these tall, steel gates is a town in Mexico that's under siege, and residents say there's a war raging there.
GUTIERREZ (voice-over): Entire families have been chased out of the Juarez Valley. Some have taken only what they can carry. Authorities say to make sure they can't come back their houses are burned down in a campaign of terror, where people have also been kidnapped and beheaded.
We found this man in a nearby town. We're protecting his identity because he fears for his life. He says he received a chilling phone call telling him to leave or be killed. So he gathered up his wife and children. They fled with only the clothes on their backs.
GUTIERREZ (on camera): You couldn't have called the police or the authorities and say, you know, I'm being threatened to leave?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
GUTIERREZ: There is none?
GUTIERREZ (voice-over): The police force has been decimated. The town's chief of police was murdered two years ago. He hasn't been replaced because no one wants the job. The mayor was gunned down last October. Cartel hit men were blamed, but as in most cases, no one has been captured.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's one of the houses that got burned.
GUTIERREZ: This man says these pictures tell the story of a place that has fallen to the cartel. It's a ghost town. There are no clinics, no people on the street or children in the plaza. More than half of the residents have fled. He did, too.
GUTIERREZ (on camera): Who is left?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just the people that can't go anywhere else.
GUTIERREZ: They took your brother? Did you find your brother?
GUTIERREZ (voice-over): This man's brother is among the missing. His home was also set ablaze. Now, having fled the town where he was born and raised, he says he only finds solace in his music.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BALDWIN: Thelma Gutierrez joining me now from Los Angeles. A beautiful song. I know you mentioned thousands of people, whole families who flee the Juarez Valley. How many people have been chased out of their homes, Thelma? GUTIERREZ: Brooke, this town used to have maybe 10,000 people who lived there. There were factories, businesses. It was a vibrant place. Now, there are fewer than 5,000 people, and as you can see by some of those pictures, it looked like an absolute ghost town.
BALDWIN: Charred remains because so many of the buildings and homes had been burned. What about the Mexican government in all of this? What are they doing, if anything, about all these families having to flee?
GUTIERREZ: Very difficult problem, Brooke. We talked to the head of operations for the military, and they told us they have 2,500 troops who are now in that valley of Juarez trying to secure it.
But you talk to the people there, and they say that unless the soldiers are actually standing there when the homes are getting burned, they cannot really do anything, and some of the residents say they are not even sure who to trust.
You know, they are able to move all of these people out of that area, Brooke, because we're talking about a very brutal campaign of terror where death lists have been floated through the plaza with people's names on it. There was a fellow who was beheaded and his head was left outside of a school. And so people say this is not something you play with. When they tell you to leave, you go.
BALDWIN: You leave. Porvenir, doesn't in Spanish it mean "future"? These poor people don't have one. Thelma Gutierrez, thank you so much.
BALDWIN: Put down your iPad and e-reader and think about today's bankruptcy news just for a second for me. Is the bookstore chain the proverbial canary in the mines for traditional books? We'll get more on that in your Political Ticker, all coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: Time now for a quick political update. Gloria Borger in Washington. Gloria, what's happening today?
GLORIA BORGER, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: How you doing? Well, let's start in Massachusetts. Pretty interesting, Senator Scott Brown, that Republican you'll recall who won Ted Kennedy's seat and surprised a lot of people. He's got a new book coming out with some pretty shocking revelations in it. He tells CBS' "60 Minutes" for Sunday that he was sexually abused as a child by a camp counselor who threatened to kill him if he told anyone. He also detailed some physical abuse by his step-fathers, something he says his mother is now learning for the first time, Brooke.
And switching gears to the 2012 presidential race, talking about the Donald. We seem to be talking a lot about Donald Trump lately. There is one draft Donald movement, and I am here to report now, Brooke, there are officially two. This started by an Iraq war veteran from the state of Missouri. You know that Donald Trump has been out there speaking to conservatives, visiting the state of New Hampshire, so who knows? He might run.
Now, someone we're pretty sure is going to get into the race is Mitt Romney, and he's not in Massachusetts. He's actually visiting Utah, which is kind of some old stomping grounds for him. Remember, he ran the 22 Olympics out of salt lake. It's interesting because Utah is the former home of Jon Huntsman, another potential Republican presidential nominee. If both of those men, Brooke, they're going to both be Mormons running, and that could be difficult for each of them, very difficult.
BALDWIN: Interesting.
BORGER: Yes, very.
BALDWIN: Gloria Borger, thank you very much.
BORGER: Thank you.
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: We will get another political update for you in half- an-hour. We will give you updates online. Just go to CNNPolitics.com. Or hop on Twitter at @PoliticalTicker.
