Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

The Heroes of Joplin; Pres. Obama to Visit Joplin Sunday; Will Palin Run or Not?; Teen Honors War Heroes Online; Casey Anthony Goes on Trial; Rutgers Student Webcam Spying Case

Aired May 28, 2011 - 12:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right, top of the hour right now. We're focusing on the things that are not so fun in Joplin, Missouri. More than 150 people still have not been heard from since the deadliest tornado on record hit there last Sunday. One hundred thirty two are confirmed dead, more than 1,000 people were hurt.

The federal government has approved nearly $3 million in aid, and President Obama actually plans to meet with survivors tomorrow in the city of Joplin.

So, all week we've been hearing extraordinary stories of survival and, of course, about the people who died trying to save others. Our Paul Vercammen is in Joplin. So Paul, you've been hearing a lot about the heroes of Joplin amongst the debris there?

PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN SENIOR PRODUCER: Fredricka, it's amazing to think, when you get a gander of just how widespread all of this misery is, that anybody, you know, did survive this. But, of course, they did.

And what happened at Home Depot was interesting last Sunday, because a man named Dean Wells, 59 years old, was so busy helping other people get to shelter in spots of the store that, in a way, he forgot about himself. Well, his memorial service was today, and to say that he was a bit of a character would be probably one of the vast understatements of the day.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VERCAMMEN (voice-over): Dean Wells, "The Whistler," they called him, ten-year Army Veteran and former Blackhawk helicopter crew chief. Before the tornado smashed the Home Depot where he was a manager into this tangle of despair, by several accounts, Wells directed at least a half a dozen people to safety when he could have saved himself.

Wells paid for his good deeds with his life. No surprise to his family, talking about their hero on a front porch.

DEANNA MANICINI, DEAN WELLS' DAUGHTER: This is who he was. He helped anybody and everybody, and - and he died doing it.

VERCAMMEN: Dean showed adoration for his wife, Sue, by spray-painting the ground.

SUE WELLS, DEAN WELLS' WIFE: When it was our 42nd anniversary, and our anniversaries were so special to him and me.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

VERCAMMEN: Dean made his mother proud, and he made her laugh.

JEAN WELLS, DEAN WELLS' MOTHER: Well, he brought home all kinds of animal when he was little to save.

PAULLA WELLS, DEAN WELLS' DAUGHTER: He was always helping other people, and I miss him. But I'm glad that if he had to lose his life, he lost it the way that he lived it.

VERCAMMEN: About that nickname, Dean lived whistling. This is a recording of this devout churchgoer doing his rendition of "Amazing Grace."

(AMAZING GRACE PLAYING)

VERCAMMEN: How sweet the sound.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VERCAMMEN: And Dean Wells would whistle for pretty much anybody who would listen. He also entertained people often, whistling at senior centers in this area and churches. He will be missed.

His memorial service, earlier this morning, Fred.

WHITFIELD: And Paul, the president is going to be arriving tomorrow. How are people preparing and how highly anticipated is the president's visit?

VERCAMMEN: I think they're all looking forward to President Obama coming here. He's going to speak as well at a local university.

One thing that we are hearing is, people in Joplin are talking about aide overseas, the president being overseas. They don't think that he should have come back from his trip shortly. But they're saying, if we can reach out to other countries in despair, let's hope the federal government really steps in here and helps out Joplin because, as you can tell, it's going to take a long time to rebuild this city.

WHITFIELD: Paul Vercammen, thanks so much, from Joplin.

So more now on the president's planned visit to Joplin. He is expected to arrive early in the afternoon tomorrow and walk through some of the devastated neighborhoods that you saw right there as the backdrop, with Paul there.

Then, he'll speak at the memorial service for victims. That's set for 3:00 P.M. Eastern time in Joplin, Sunday. CNN plans to bring that to you live, as it happens.

And here is how you can help the people of Joplin. Just log on to CNN.com/impact and check out our special page. It has all the tools that you need to try to make a difference. So let's check in with our meteorologist, Reynolds Wolf. It seems that this weather, this entire spring, has just been so tragic, so tumultuous. Are the people out of the woods there or is there more strange stuff on the way in that region?

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well - well, it's interesting that you ask, because earlier this morning we did have some storms developing north of Joplin. But in terms of Downtown Joplin itself, I think they're going to be in pretty good shape for today, for the time being. Looks like they're in the clear. The storm's passed well to the north, right along the I-35 corridor, north of 44 also.

But what we're going to be seeing in the afternoon is the potential to see more rough weather develop. Again, mainly north of Joplin, but still, from about parts of the Midwest, all the way to the front range of the Rockies, you can expect that chance of severe storms.

In the southeast, humid, very warm for you, scattered showers possible in the Great Lakes. Out west, Fredricka, it's going to be a combination of rain in the low-lying areas, and then in higher elevations, switching from raindrops to snowflakes. So some spots could get severe - fairly heavy snowfall.

Keep in mind, there are a couple of places, a couple of roads at Yellowstone National Park, that are still blocked with up to 20 feet of snowfall. Hard to believe, but that's going to be the case.

Sixty-one (INAUDIBLE) high today for Salt Lake City; 57 in Seattle; 72 in Minneapolis; 81 in Washington, D.C.; 88 in Atlanta. High humidity, though, in Atlanta. Don't let it fool you. It's going to make you feel much warmer, and 93, perhaps even around 95. Seventy-five, your high in Boston, near have Fenway Park; 88 in Miami. Some slash and dash showers possible on the coast. One-oh-one in El Paso; and 57 degrees in Seattle; San Francisco with 61.

As we fast forward for the rest of your weekend, just to give you an idea, as we include both kind of Sunday and Monday together, just looking at the trend. Mainly rain in the northern half of the country. Everything to the south, very steamy for you in parts of the southeast, of course, and then when you get into places like El Paso, Texas, going up to around 101. It should stay in the 100s all the way through - well, this seems - this time of the year is going to be warm for quite a while.

WHITFIELD: Yes. And -

WOLF: Something about some -

WHITFIELD: We're in it. We're in summer.

WOLF: Yes. Exactly.

WHITFIELD: I mean, the calendar doesn't say that, the holiday weekend does.

WOLF: Absolutely. What's even more distressing is we're going to go from severe weather season in terms of tornadoes to -

WHITFIELD: That's right, hurricane.

WOLF: Hurricane season, June 1st. The first day.

WHITFIELD: Next Wednesday.

WOLF: Hard to believe, it's already here, almost.

WHITFIELD: It is. It is. We're halfway through the year already.

All right, thanks so much, Reynolds.

WOLF: You bet.

WHITFIELD: Appreciate that.

All right, so maybe it's not good weather in all places that people can be excited about this holiday weekend, but millions of Americans will find some relief in the fact that gas prices are actually dropping. AAA says the national average for a gallon of regular unleaded is $3.81 a gallon. That's down 15 days straight now.

But let's not kid ourselves. That means that gas is still pretty high compared (INAUDIBLE) to last year. Up almost $1 more than last year, this time.

So this weekend marks the unofficial start of summer, but if you try to go for a swim in a public pool, don't be surprised if it's actually closed this weekend. That's because the federal government is recalling one million pool and spa drain covers. The outdated design can allow up to 500 pounds of suction power, enough to actually trap a swimmer.

Critics say the recall is long overdue.

And in politics, straight ahead, Sarah Palin is back in the spotlight and sounding and acting a lot like a candidate. We'll tell you what she's doing that's fueling speculation about a possible presidential bid this weekend.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Just off the coast of a North Carolina beach, divers have discovered a piece of history - a very large piece of history.

Check it out. This is an anchor believed to be from Blackbeard's pirate ship. It is 11 feet long and weighs about 3,000 pounds. Archaeologists say it was one of three anchors from Queen Anne's Revenge which sank nearly 300 years ago.

Quite the find.

Sarah Palin says she has a fire in her belly to steer America in a new direction. So the former Alaska governor has jumped back into the spotlight with a multi-city bus tour that kicks off tomorrow in Washington.

Let's turn to CNN deputy political director Paul Steinhauser in Washington. So Paul, what's this tour all about, and does it indeed indicate that Palin is ready to make an announcement anytime soon?

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: You know, Fred, a week ago, we weren't really talking about Sarah Palin when it comes to the race for the White House. But, yes, a lot of hints and a lot of signals the last week, and especially this bus tour, which was just announced.

It's - it's kicking off tomorrow here as D.C. celebrates Memorial Day, as the whole nation does. And this - this bus tour is going to hit some Civil War battlefield sites, like Antietam and Gettysburg. It's also going to the Liberty Bell in Pennsylvania; in Philadelphia; and it's going to also be in New Hampshire. We know New Hampshire holds the first primary in the race for the White House.

So, a big hint here, but is it a hint that she's running for the White House or just trying to get back in the limelight? Because, on the flipside, when you look at Sarah Palin, she really hasn't made that many concrete efforts yet in the early voting states. She hasn't tried to build up staff or call to reach out to voters directly in person. And also her contract with FOX News is not being altered, at least as of now. She continues to be a paid contributor. That's also a telling sign.

I - I really don't know, Fred, if this is a - the start of a campaign or maybe just getting some more attention.

WHITFIELD: And so where does she stand in the polls, or does she even exist in the polls right now?

STEINHAUSER: She does exist. That's another very good point that would maybe lead her to run.

Take a look at this. This is our poll, CNN and the Opinion Research Corporation. We put it out just yesterday, a national poll of Republicans and independents and (INAUDIBLE).

Look at that. Right at the top, there is Rudy Giuliani, the former New York City mayor. He's not running, but he's thinking about it. Mitt Romney at 15 percent; Sarah Palin at 13 percent. They're basically all tied within the sample here. And another poll came out the day before that had her right there, too, so she's very much at the top of this very unsettled field.

But take a look at the next number. This is also interesting. Republicans, maybe not so in love with the current crop of candidates. Only 16 percent say they're very satisfied with the current crop of candidates. At the bottom, you could see right there, four in 10 say they're not satisfied. So maybe there is a hunger for Republicans to see somebody new. Maybe.

WHITFIELD: Interesting. So that big number, not satisfied, that means there is room, perhaps, for someone else to jump into the ring. Any - any takers so far?

STEINHAUSER: Here's what we know. It's going to -

WHITFIELD: (INAUDIBLE).

STEINHAUSER: Yes, here's what we know. It's going to be official next week, Mitt Romney. Listen, he's all but declared. This - this upcoming Thursday, in New Hampshire, Mitt Romney will officially announce his candidacy for president. No surprise, New Hampshire an important state for him to win.

A few days later, Rick Santorum, the former senator from Pennsylvania, he's all but declared. He will declare as well.

And then there is Michele Bachmann. This is somebody we're all wondering, will she run or wouldn't she run? The Minnesota congresswoman was a darling of Tea Party activists.

Well, she said the other day, Fred, that she will make a big announcement in her home state of Iowa, where she was born, later in June. So, stay tuned. We'll see what happens.

WHITFIELD: Oh, that ever so important Iowa. All right.

STEINHAUSER: Yes.

WHITFIELD: Thanks so much, Paul. Appreciate that.

STEINHAUSER: Thanks.

WHITFIELD: All right, a high-tech teenager uses his skills to preserve and honor the sacrifices of war heroes. That story, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: And this Memorial Day Weekend, the nation honors American service members who have died in battle.

CNN's Sandra Endo has the story of one teenager who is trying to preserve the memories of war heroes online.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SANDRA ENDO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): One by one, 17-year-old Ricky Gilleland keeps the spirit behind these headstones at Arlington National Cemetery alive online.

ENDO (on camera): You come here thinking, what?

RICKY GILLELAND, FOUNDER, PRESERVEANDHONOR.COM: Well, it's sad, because I come here and I look at the - the birth dates and death dates and I think, you know, these are kids that aren't much older than me.

ENDO (voice-over): The computer whiz started documenting the 858 soldiers who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan and are buried at Arlington after he heard about the recordkeeping problems at the cemetery. He posted the information and pictures on his website called PreserveandHonor.com. It's received more than a million hits since it launched in October.

ENDO (on camera): What do you hope for when people log on to your website?

GILLELAND: I hope that they can go on and feel a little bit of comfort in knowing that, you know, they're not just a number of casualties or anything like that. They're actual people.

ENDO: And investigation by the Army Inspector General found 211 graves were mislabeled here, and Arlington Cemetery has been under fire for keeping an antiquated record system of the roughly 300,000 men and women laid to rest here.

JENNIFER LYNCH, ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY: We actually are in the process of modernizing our recordkeeping. It will make actually people who are doing sites like Ricky's a lot easier because it's all going to be available on our website.

ENDO (voice-over): For Gilleland, his project took on a deeper meaning as he learned more about one fallen soldier.

GILLELAND: What's special about this headstone in particular is that it's the only one around it that has gold lettering, which - that means that it's a - he was a Medal of Honor winner.

GEORGE W. BUSH, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And keep us ever grateful for the life of Ross Andrew McGinnis.

GILLELAND: He was fighting. Someone threw a grenade inside the humvee. He jumped in, put his body over the grenade and absorbed most of the blast, so he saved everyone else.

ENDO: We reached out to the McGinnis family, who had no idea about Gilleland's project and became emotional after seeing the site. In an e-mail, Mr. McGinnis thanked Gilleland for his work, describing it as a way to showcase the sacrifices of our nation's heroes.

But there are still new sacrifices Gilleland will continue to capture.

Sandra Endo, CNN, Arlington National Cemetery.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Casey Anthony on trial. Her attorneys have laid out a startling defense, so you'll want to hear what our legal guys have to say about this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: This is day five of testimony in the long-awaiting Casey Anthony trial. She is charged with killing her two-year-old daughter, Caylee. But in opening statements, her attorney surprised nearly everyone with the claim that Caylee drowned accidentally in her grandparents' pool.

Let's bring in our legal guys. Avery Friedman, a civil rights attorney and law professor in Cleveland. Hello. And Richard Herman -

AVERY FRIEDMAN, LAW PROFESSOR: Hello.

WHITFIELD: -- a New York criminal defense attorney and law professor, joining us from Las Vegas. Good to see you, Richard.

RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Hi, Fred. I'm glad to see you made it out of that NASCAR. That was great.

WHITFIELD: Oh, it was great. We'll have to talk about that some more later.

So, let's talk about this case.

HERMAN: Yes.

WHITFIELD: This really did surprise an awful lot of people who've been watching this case very closely, that Casey Anthony - her defense team would now say that this child may have drowned in the swimming pool, and that the grandfather, Casey's father, was there, and that this whole case of murder or alleged murder is taking a completely different turn to now accidental death, Richard.

HERMAN: Yes, well, just imagine the drama in the courtroom, Fred. The district attorney stands up there and outlines this intentional killing and chloroforming of this daughter and wanting to live the good life, to get rid of this anchor, so she killed her daughter.

Then, the defense gets up and says, actually, the daughter drowned in a swimming pool, and the father was holding the daughter. The mother came and they cried. And then, it was an accidental drowning, however, the father decided rather than call the police, rather than call the paramedics, rather than try to revive -

WHITFIELD: A former detective himself.

FRIEDMAN: Yes. I mean - right.

HERMAN: Yes. They're going to take care of the baby and bury the baby themselves, which, in the end, Fred, that little twist at the end there, I think that's just not going to be to believed by any rational jury. And I think she's got -

FRIEDMAN: Right.

HERMAN: -- they got a huge problem with the defense.

WHITFIELD: So - and Avery, the - the remains of this child, Caylee, were found like eight months after she was reported missing. So it has been made clear there was evidence that showed duct tape that was possibly around her mouth, that there may have been some trauma to the head. But would it have been too late, eight months after the fact of a decomposing body, to even determine whether drowning or suffocating, any of those things could have been causes for her death?

FRIEDMAN: Well, that's - that's a wonderful question. I mean, one of the - one of the important points here, especially with the defense, is that those are sort of questions that can be raised.

But I think the complication here, Fredricka, is that, in the defense, if you just dealt with the science of what he alleges she went through in child abuse and zeroed in - in on that, then at least it's plausible. The problem with the defense, at least as I see it, is that he's created multiple conflicting defenses, meaning he now has to prove that the cause of this mental problem that the defendant had was because of the behavior of the father, the brother, everybody else -

WHITFIELD: And how will they go about that?

FRIEDMAN: -- and it's inconsistent.

WHITFIELD: How will they do that?

FRIEDMAN: Yes. I mean - I don't know how he's going to do it. He's trying - actually, George has been on the fence (ph) - on the stand and he - he said, well, you abused your daughter. She says, well, no, I didn't, and - and that was the end of it. I mean -

WHITFIELD: And he's very composed throughout.

FRIEDMAN: -- it's just inconsistent.

WHITFIELD: He's very composed throughout, and that apparently the prosecutors -

FRIEDMAN: Yes.

WHITFIELD: -- were asking questions to possibly get a rise out of him, to show that this kind of agitation that you're seeing now on the stand could certainly be now placed to the, you know, scene of this, you know, alleged accident.

Now, of course, he never did lose control, apparently. He was very much in control the whole time. So I guess no one really scored any points here, Avery.

HERMAN: Well, the defense -

FRIEDMAN: Oh, I don't -

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: I'm sorry. Go ahead.

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: Avery first. HERMAN: I'm sorry. They have to have an explanation for her erratic conduct 30 days after the child goes missing and why she - her compulsive lying -

FRIEDMAN: Right.

HERMAN: So what they're saying is because of long-term sexual and physical abuse, Caylee has this trauma, and they're going to bring in experts, Fred, forensic psychologists that are going to say her actions are consistent with someone who suffered incest or sexual abuse by family members. That's going to be their explanation.

WHITFIELD: OK. We're -

FRIEDMAN: But that -

WHITFIELD: Yes. Go ahead, real quick.

FRIEDMAN: Just very quickly, but that's different than saying that these are the guys that did it, adding another layer here, which is unnecessary.

WHITFIELD: OK. So now let's move on to the case involving a Rutgers student, you know, eight months after being accused of using a webcam to spy on a 19-year-old - or an 18-year-old student, Tyler Clementi. Nineteen-year-old student, Dharun Ravi, in court, facing charges now.

Now, apparently, there's also - there's some allegations now involving how he may have tried to cover up evidence, Richard, that this young man may have erased texts, that he may have tried to coerce some other eyewitnesses. Where is this case going, and how difficult will it be for prosecutors to prove, too?

HERMAN: Oh, this is a very serious case for this young man, and - especially since the co-defendant has made a cooperation deal and is going to testify -

FRIEDMAN: That's right.

HERMAN: -- against him and lay out the case point-blank.

He's in big trouble. He's facing a maximum of 10 years on - on one of the counts there. It's bias crimes. It's basically an obstruction of justice. He recreated a web program.

I mean, it's really, really bad, and I think they got him dead to rights on this one. He's got to make a deal. They cannot go to trial on this case.

WHITFIELD: Oh, Avery -

FRIEDMAN: Yes?

WHITFIELD: -- do you agree?

FRIEDMAN: Bottom line, 15 counts - yes, the co-defendant, Wei, is going to testify. I just don't know how he's going to get out of this mess. It's a very, very serious matter. Absolutely.

WHITFIELD: All right. Avery, Richard, we're going to talk to you again. You're back in about 20 minutes. We're going to talk about the case that seems to be building now against former presidential candidate John Edwards involving campaign money and allegations of misuse of that money to cover up an affair.

We're going to talk about that when we see you again later on this hour, gentlemen. Thank you.

And here's something that you haven't seen in four years. The border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip open. We'll tell you what it could mean for Israel, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A look at our top stories right now.

Officials in Joplin, Missouri say the number of people unaccounted for since Sunday's tornado has dropped to 105. Nearly 50 bodies have been identified since late last night. Rescue teams are still searching through the rubble for possible survivors.

And President Obama heads to Joplin tomorrow to tour the disaster zone and to attend a memorial service. Today, he wraps up a six-day European trip with meeting in Poland. President Obama says Poland's successful transformation to democracy makes it a valuable partner in addressing unrest around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We discussed the issue of how jointly we can promote democracy. The session that I had this morning with democracy promotion experts, including many of the founders of solidarity who recently traveled to Tunisia to share their advice and assistance, is just a symbol of why Poland is so important.

It has gone through what many countries want to now go through, and has done so successfully.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The president is on his way back to Washington at this hour.

Rare morning explosions rocked Libya's capital city today. A government official there says one of the blasts hit a compound in Tripoli belonging to leader Muammar Gaddafi. NATO confirmed it bombed a vehicle storage area in a second strike nearby. Meantime, Russia has joined the call for Gaddafi to step down, offering to negotiate his exit.

And Egypt has reopened its border crossing to Gaza. That opens the door to the outside world for Palestinians. Officials say hundreds passed through the border town of Rafah today. Israel worries terrorists will use it to ship arms. The Egyptian government has supported an Israeli blockade imposed back in 2007.

The former military commander known as the butcher of Bosnia is expected to appeal a judge's order that he face trial for war crime. The judge ruled that Ratko Mladic is physically and mentally healthy enough to face charges of genocide. CNN's Ivan Watson has more, including Mladic's strange request in detention.

IVAN WATSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is the courthouse where the most wanted war criminal in Europe is currently being held. And on Friday, the debate was about the medical status of the man who's been on the front page of all the Serbian newspapers. The defense and the prosecutors offering diametrically opposed opinions and views about his health. First, his son --

DARKO MLADIC, RATKO MLADIC'S SON: he's in very bad shape. His health is very deteriorating. We are asking the court to send him to the hospital.

WATSON: the court officials ruled on Friday that Ratko Mladic is fit for extradition to the Hague.

MAYA LOVACEVIC, COURT SPOKESWOMAN (through translator): We have an official statement by doctors that he has a list of chronic diseases, but he is medically capable of attending the hearing. After the hearing, the court has delivered the decision that he is of sane mind and body and that he fulfills all the requirements to be delivered to the Hague tribunal.

WATSON: Defense attorneys have three days to file an appeal for Ratko Mladic. In the meantime, the deputy prosecutor of the court, who spoke with CNN, told us that on Thursday night, shortly after his arrest when he first appeared before a judge here, Mladic was angry, abusive. He accused the deputy prosecutor of being a CIA agent. On Friday, his manner changed. The deputy prosecutor said he received an apology from Ratko Mladic and also several requests from court officials. Mladic asked for books by the Russian authors Leo Tolstoy and Nikolai Gogol, not Dostoevsky and his famous novel, "Crime and Punishment". He also made a request some might not expect from a man who is described by some observers as the butcher of Bosnia. He asked for fresh strawberries.

WHITFIELD: That was Ivan Watson reporting.

After months of review, the criminal investigation into former presidential candidate John Edwards may be about to head to court. Our legal guys are ready to jump on this case.

And it's a big movie weekend. As the long awaited "Hangover 2" hits theaters, but guess what, a lawsuit over Mike Tyson's tattoo almost stopped it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, is former presidential candidate John Edwards about to be indicted for alleged misuse of campaign money to cover up an affair? Our legal guys are back. Avery FRIEDMAN in Cleveland, Richard HERMAN in Las Vegas. All right gentlemen. Avery, you first. Are we looking at a potential trial here with an indictment that precedes it or are we looking at possible plea deals?

AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Both actually. There's, I think, little doubt that the justice department is going to indict John Edwards. But they're going to have to prove a case that is very novel both in facts and law. The bottom line on it is his big donor, Bunny Mellon, gave him $4 million, $700,000 of which is alleged to have been applied to Rielle Hunter and a cover-up. The campaign manager's dead bunny, by the way, Fredericka, is 100 years old. Actually john went - John Edwards went visit her yesterday. And, the only witness left, the discredited Andrew Young, the former campaign aide.

WHITFIELD: But - but about that money, prosecutors are going to have to prove, that the money -- if there was money that was transferred to Rielle Hunter, that it came from that Mellon money and not perhaps from John Edwards' own bank account, because he had money, too.

FRIEDMAN: Sure.

WHITFIELD: So that's going to be difficult, is it not?

RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Yes well, absolutely. Well, I don't think it's going to be difficult, Fred, since his former finance chairman, Fred baron, already gave interviews with the government to say that he absolutely took that money and used it for a cover-up to cover up his relationship with her. They'll forensically trace the funds. The issue is a violation of public trust. The department of justice is not going to put up with that. He raised some $49, $50 million from campaign donations. And, if they applied any of that money to cover up his relationship, that's improper. That's what they will indict for. I guarantee you John Edwards' hair is all messed up these days and he is absolutely sweating this one out. But they'll probably make a deal.

WHITFIELD: So, apparently as part of discussions about a deal, a deal might mean that he - you know, John Edwards would have to give up his license to practice. And he doesn't want to do that. So is that going to potentially be the real sticking point, Avery, as to whether he would plea or not?

FRIEDMAN: Well, the risk is bigger than that, actually. I mean that would be the least he would look at if the indictment comes down because the government's not going to go away. But Richard mentioned Fred baron, the campaign manager. He's dead. He can't testify. So I think, again, the only witness left is the discredited campaign aide. That's it. And nobody believes Andrew Young anyhow. I don't know how the government's going to make their case.

WHITFIELD: Interesting. All right, well, anything could happen. We're - and it seems like this has been going on for so, so long, this whole discovery phase, and we still have yet to hear whether the grand jury will conclude an indictment or not. All right, let's move on to something else, a lot of people are looking forward to "Hangover 2". You guys probably saw "Hangover 1" right? In the movie theater. (laughter)

FRIEDMAN: That's Richard's kind of movie.

WHITFIELD: Yes. No, I'm not -- laughing. Enthusiasm there -- it was hilarious.

Okay so, big weekend, this weekend "Hangover 2" people are lined up, but it almost didn't happen because the artist who says that he patented that actual tattoo that Mike Tyson wears right there.

WHITFIELD: That it makes another appearance in this movie but on someone else's face. Well, that artist has a real problem with this and says, you know, this is like copyright infringement. So, Richard, the movie gets to go on, hits theaters anyway. What does that say about the case of this artist? (inaudible) right now.

HERMAN: The case is strong.

WHITFIELD: It is?

HERMAN: Yes, the case is strong. He's got a -- he copyrighted that particular design and he brought a lawsuit to try to stop the movie from going this weekend to try to force some sort of settlement with the studio. Well, the judge said, look I'm not -- it's going to cause irreparable harm to the studio. So I'm going to allow them to show the movie. However, I find a likelihood of success on the merits for you, Mr. Artist. So those words are going to be very scary for all the defendants in this case. And they are going to absolutely structure a settlement. Look, the movie made over $37 million in one day this weekend.

WHITFIELD: wow. And so, you know, Avery, the artist, all he really wants is to get recognized and I imagine to get paid for this, too. So, the movie gets to continue on. It just means that ultimately he may be able to shave off some of the profits, right? And pocket it himself?

FRIEDMAN: well, that's what he's looking to do. U.s. district judge Catherine Perry who heard the case, the federal judge, rejected Warner Brothers' argument. Warner brothers argued you can't copyright a tattoo. That was their argument. The federal district judge, (inaudible) her opinion --

WHITFIELD: is that true?

FRIEDMAN: she said it was silly, of course you can. But the idea of blocking the opening of "hangover 2" and all that's with it - I mean the federal district judge was right, you're not going to block the opening. It was the right thing to do. But in a way, it's correct because the judge still has to hear the merits of the case, even though there's a likelihood of prevailing. So I think this tattoo artist is in pretty good shape for the future.

WHITFIELD: And - so I am asking attorneys for the movie are now trying to do a little added research, really vigorous research to see if -- does he really - did he really patent this? Might anybody else have a very similar, if not identical tattoo, that has more cultural roots or something that wouldn't necessarily be patented, Richard?

FRIEDMAN: Well, that's great, Fred. That's a great theory I think you've just given them somewhere to go. But I don't -- I've never seen this tattoo before. It's pretty bizarre.

(CROSSTALK)

FRIEDMAN: And when you look at the movie, the first thing anybody says is --

(CROSSTALK)

FRIEDMAN: I'm sorry, when everybody saw this design in the move commercials, the first thing that's said is that's Mike Tyson's tattoo. So, it's just a natural reaction.

WHITFIELD: Okay, Avery?

FRIEDMAN: But Mike -- but the tattoo artist didn't originate that. This comes from a tribal design from Africa. It's a variation on it.

WHITFIELD: That's what I thought. In New Zealand. Yes, that's what I thought.

FRIEDMAN: That's right. I mean that's your point. I mean they're going to hire -- Warner Brothers should be hiring Fredericka to defend this case. I'm telling you, that's exactly what the defense is. I think it's a good one. But again, there's going to be a very close examination of the two tattoos. We're going to see what happens. I think the tattoo artist prevails in the case.

WHITFIELD: okay. We'll see. And Richard, you're calling it how? Who prevails?

HERMAN: Settlement, settlement, settlement, settlement.

WHITFIELD: all right. Gentlemen, thanks so much. Appreciate that. Always good to see you. Have a great weekend, Richard and Avery.

HERMAN: Wonderful to see you.

FRIEDMAN: Have a wonderful holiday, too Fredericka.

WHITFIELD: thank you so much. >

Of course, you know, we're talking about "hangover 2," which means it's probably, you know, part of your plan this weekend. Well, stay tuned because we're going to actually have a review of the film at 4:00 eastern time. Not talking about lawsuits at 4:00. Instead we're going to talk about whether you need to see it.

And here's an update on other cases that we, Avery, Richard and I have been following for a long time now. Bishop Eddie long will not be going to court after all. This week the Atlanta based televangelist reached a settlement with four young men who accused him of sexual coercion. >

Also closed, the case against two New York City police officers accused of raping a drunken woman that they escorted home back in 2008. Well, on Thursday, Kenneth Moreno and Franklin Mata were found not guilty but, they were convicted of official misconduct for returning to the woman's home three times. Both men were fired immediately after the trial and now they could face jail sentences because of that. >

And, the case of Jared Lee Loughner, is on hold. A federal judge has declared him incompetent to stand trial. Loughner is accused of killing six people and injuring 13 others, including Arizona congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords back in January. He was moved to a hospital in Springfield, Missouri, yesterday. >

All right, most people see a tornado and run. But some run right for it. We'll show you the startling images caught on video by a special breed of people called storm chasers.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: It's one thing to see the fearsome power of a tornado from a distance, but some risk their lives trying to get the closest view possible. They are the storm chasers, experts who spent the week trailing twisters state to state as they tore across the Midwest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: It's coming.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: There's power lines right here.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: We're good.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: My God.

UNIDIENTIFIED SPEAKER: The lake.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Yeah, let's get up there.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Listen to it!

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Oh, man!

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Oh, it's getting big, big, big.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: That's huge.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: I've got it all on video. I've got it all on video.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Sounds like a waterfall. Wedge tornado.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: It is on the outskirts, the western edge of Waverly now. It is in a more populated area.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Oh, my gosh. Oh, my gosh! There it is. There it is. Oh, gosh, that is a monster tornado.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: It's crossing the road.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Oh, my god! Back up. Oh, no! Stop. Oh, no, what did it destroy? Oh, it's a trailer house. Slow down!

UNIDENTIFIED SPEKAER: Very large tornado.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: We just had a power flash.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEKAER: Oh, my gosh.

UNIDIENTIFIED SPEAKER: Hopefully they'll get everybody out of there and safe.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: The motion is tremendous. David Payne, are you still with us? Violent tornado --

PAYNE: (INAUDIBLE) it's another killer tornado. It went (INAUDIBLE) across highway 81, is when it intensified and almost got us. It intensified right on top of us. Amazing.

UNIDIENTFIED SPEAKER: This was a violent tornado. You see how it's carving out kind of a v-shaped debris cloud. This was live for a good 20, 25 minutes. That's the Goldsby water tower, and we showed that to you a short while ago, but watch this as it comes into Goldsby. And folks were watching and they were in their safe spot and a lot of folks left town, a lot of folks got out of town, they were in their safe spot because homes are obliterated down in Goldsby.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Right there. You got it. We've got a funnel.

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Tornado on the ground, Tuchman, Arkansas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: As you recall this week, those systems proved to be very deadly and devastating for so many towns throughout Missouri and other parts of the Midwest. Tomorrow, President Barack Obama will be looking firsthand at Joplin, Missouri. He is expected to arrive early in the afternoon. First he will walk through some of the devastated neighborhoods there and then actually talk to some of the survivors. Then he's scheduled to speak at a memorial service for the victims. CNN plans to bring you that coverage live beginning at 3:00 Eastern Time. >

WHITFIELD: All right maybe this summer you're thinking about putting your house up for sale. Well, how can you spruce up your home for the competitive edge in this tough market? That's straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Despite glimmers of hope in some sectors of the economy, when it comes to real estate, times are still pretty tough. If your home is on the market and you're hoping to get some bites from home shoppers this weekend, listen up. Christine Romans has some tips in today's edition of "Smart Is the New Rich".

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yvonne Cammaro and her husband are looking to sell their home in Western New York.

YVONNE CAMMARO: It's been now a month. But last year we had it on for a whole year -- almost a year and we didn't sell it.

STEPHEN SAINT ONGE, HOME AND STYLE DESIGNER: Right. Is there anything you did in between to get the house into shape so that it would be ready for the new real estate market that you're coming into?

CAMMARO: Oh, yes. When -- we redid the kitchen, and we fenced in the whole back yard.

ROMANS: But they priced it too high and have now lowered their asking price to $329,000. It's a buyer's market. And, that means number one, it has to be priced right. Number two, it has to look good. Enter Steven St. Auges, home and style designer and author of "No Place Like Home."

SAINT ONGE: My first thought was, I wish this was a mirror. I wish this was here to bounce light into the room a little bit more.

ROMANS: We asked him how to help this house sell in a sea of homes for sale.

SAINT ONGE: You don't have a dining room. So that's one thing in this house that you have to sort of make people feel like they have a space to gather in. When I see the table, I almost think because you've got this great light fixture that you guys obviously put in, it's to center the table.

ROMANS: And spring is traditionally real estate's biggest selling season. But according to Fannie Mae, home sales are expected to remain soft in the near term and the spring season could deliver disappointing results. So in this climate, when it comes to sprucing up your house to sell, it can be something as small and simple as paint color that can make a really big difference. For a couple hundred dollars, you could redo the whole first floor. Or just paint the foyer, depending on what you can afford. Here's a hint for you though, gray is the new beige. A cool modern gray right away tells prospective buyers that your house is different than all the other ones on the block.

ADELE GEORGE, NORTHERN DUTCHESS REALTY: I think for very little money, you can tweak a house all over the place.

ROMANS: And perhaps at the end of the day, the most important thing to keep in mind. It's all about coming home.

SAINT ONGE: There are simple things that create that mental illusion for people coming in as a prospective buyer to say, I could see myself living in this home. And that's really key. ROMANS: Christine Romans, CNN, New York.

WHITFIELD: All right, so now you've sold your home, hopefully? Well, how do you like your coffee? Cream, sugar? How about with some sweet peas? Yes, the vegetable kind, like that. I'll explain after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, is your caramel macchiato tasting a little bit funny? Well if the coffee is from Cuba, it might be tasting kind of funny for good reason. Almost 70 percent jump in coffee prices there has forced the Cuban government to actually add roasted peas. Yes, the vegetables. The kind you eat, to the coffee blend. Cuba had actually done this for decades before going to the pure stuff back in 2005.

WHITFIELD: All right, come back and join us again at 2:00 Eastern Time. We are talking about what you need to do with your finances before you go on that summer vacation. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. "YOUR MONEY" starts right now.