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DNA Clears Wrongly Convicted Man; Florida Refuses to Pay Wrongly Convicted Compensation; Jet Catches Fire, Passengers Evacuate; Mayor: Parts of Tuscaloosa Still Look Like Tornado Hit Yesterday; At Least Seven Dead in Afghanistan Suicide Attack

Aired May 28, 2011 - 17:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Drew Griffin in for Don Lemon. We're going to start with some breaking news happening right here in Atlanta, Hartsfield-Jackson Airport. Just a few minutes ago, the FAA tells us that that flight there, Delta flight 2284, a regional jet operated here in Atlanta, blew a tire we're told as it landed, just a few minutes ago. And you can see at least a portion of the fuselage has some smoke on it. We believe there was a fire. We're trying to get details of this. Passengers on the plane had to be evacuated. Scary moments obviously but apparently there are no injuries. Just a few minutes ago, we did watch a bus transport passengers from that plane to the delta terminals here in Atlanta. We want to bring in on the phone, Kalel Dunst, Mr. Dunst, you were in a hotel that overlooks the runway as I'm told. Can you tell us exactly what you saw?

KALEL DUNST, WITNESS (on the phone): We were just out on the balcony of our hotel that overlooks the runway and we were just watching planes come in and then after one landed there was a big boom and just a line of smoke and then it looks like it turned off the runway and then the fire got a lot bigger. And then fire trucks went over and they started evacuating everybody.

GRIFFIN: And did you see any need for any ambulance or anything like that?

DUNST: A bunch of ambulances and fire trucks went to it. I don't know if they need them or it was just because of the fire.

GRIFFIN: OK. Mr. Dunst, thank you so much for that eyewitness account. Again, we're trying to get some official information from either the airport or the airline. This just obviously happened a few minutes ago and we're not sure which runway that is tying up. This is certainly turning into a problem with the flights coming in and out of Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. Just working the computer here to see where we might be going to next. But again, a flight that has landed. So, this was the bus that I guess just a few minutes ago was taking the passengers from the plane to the terminal. Again, we're hoping to get in touch with both Delta, with the airport and perhaps even some of the passengers who were onboard to see what exactly took place, whether or not anyone on board might have been hurt. Again, we're told this flight originated in Pittsburgh. If we have the flight number correct, it was due to land at 4:55 p.m. That would be about the time that this all began to happen.

We'll continue to follow this story as we get more information. Again, a Delta flight 2284 looks like everybody is OK but it did have to make an emergency landing.

We move on with other top stories of the day. The Taliban claiming responsibility for a suicide bombing that has killed seven people and wounded the German commander of NATO forces in northern Afghanistan. Among the dead, two Afghan police chiefs and two German soldiers. This blast happened as high level Afghan and coalition officials were meeting. NATO and Afghan President Hamid Karzai both condemned the attack. We'll have a live report from Islamabad ahead.

Egypt has reopened its border crossing into Gaza today. That effectively eases a four-year Israeli blockade. Hundreds of Palestinians streamed into Egypt. Some for the first time ever. Some now seeking medical treatment. Watching all this with concern is Israel which fears that this move could allow more militants and more weapons to get in and out of Gaza.

President Obama is headed back to Washington right now. He wrapped up a six-day trip to Europe today in Poland spotlighting that country's 1980s transition to democracy and calling for that to be a model for nations across North Africa and the Middle East. He held meeting with Poland's president and prime minister as well as veterans of the solidarity labor movement which is credited with helping end communism in Poland.

Now to tornado ravage Missouri, President Obama will visit Joplin, Sunday, meeting with victims of last Sunday's huge tornado. And today, officials announce there are more victims. The death toll increasing 142 people killed. More than 100 still missing. Despite the widespread damage, CNN's Casey Wian says, rebuilding has already started there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DARREN COLLINS, CONTRACTOR: This is America. And we're going to rebuild it.

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Four days after a historic tornado demolished much of Joplin, Missouri...

COLLINS: And put them underneath.

WIAN: Contractor Darren Collins started construction on the first new building to emerge from the rubble.

COLLINS: At some point, we're going to have to stop scratching our heads and standing staring at the rubble and roll up our sleeves and get things back to some sort of normalcy.

WIAN: He's rebuilding his wife's beauty salon which we built once before 17-years-ago. On Tuesday, Collin discussed the idea with Shack (ph) city officials, Wednesday, they gave them the OK to start and Thursday construction began. COLLINS: We've had just an enormous outpouring of generosity and help to get prepared to get back to this point. The city has been great. City of Joplin allowed us a permit in record time.

WIAN: There's still no electricity in this part of Joplin. The sub- station across the street remains in ruins to a generator powers the tools.

COLLINS: Time to roll up our sleeves and do what we can do to move on with our lives.

WIAN: Passersby continually stop to offer encouragement and support.

COLLINS: Two police officers stopped by and said, man, we want to shake your hand. But first, glimmer of hope that we've really seen towards the town rebuilding.

WIAN: Four nearby homes that Collins built in the past year are in ruins, already he has at least six projects waiting to be rebuilt.

COLLINS: My heart and prayers go out to everyone that did lost loved ones. And I hate for it to come to something like this to bring business to the area but I believe everyone around here will surprise everyone in the country with the rate that we can come back.

WIAN: After so much tragedy and so much devastation, Collins takes Solis in the cross that remains standing in the rubble of St. Mary's church across the street. And in the support he's received from his community.

COLLINS: I thank God to live in such a place.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WIAN (on camera): Now Collins says, he hopes to have that business reopened in 45 days. He may already be ahead of schedule. As pictures we were showing you were from Thursday afternoon. We're just a little while ago, here are some pictures we can show you of where that structure is today. He was hoping to have the roof on by Sunday. He's already got the roof on today as you can see. Now, one of the things that we've really noticed over the last few days here in Joplin is the incredible number of volunteers who have come to this area from all over the country to help out in the cleanup and recovery effort. 2,500 officially registered volunteers. Many hundreds more who are simply here on their own without any specific group helping out.

Joining me now is one of those. It's Abigail Williams. Tell me what you've been doing to sort of help out in this cleanup and recovery effort.

ABIGAIL WILLIAMS, VOLUNTEER: We've just been chopping down a lot of trees over by 32nd street and today we're just been clearing up houses and trying to help people out basically.

WIAN: Why did you feel it was important to come out here? WILLIAMS: I'm from here. I live in your show, I have a lot of my friends and basically almost like family members and they lost a lot here. So, I just decided to come out and help them.

WIAN: I understand tomorrow is actually your 24th birthday.

WILLIAMS: Yes.

WIAN: How are you going to celebrate your birthday?

WILLIAMS: I'm actually going to be out here. So, I'll be out here helping out. Hopefully.

WIAN: Obviously, a big job and big cleanup process ahead. Do you think this community is going to be able to rebuild and bounce back from this tragedy?

WILLIAMS: I hope so. I think it's going to take a really long time. Really long time. But eventually, I think, you know, we're strong enough that we'll be able to pull through.

WIAN: Just one of the people who are coming here, giving their time. Abigail says that she planned to volunteer somewhere else this summer. Just got finished with her college and now, she's going to volunteer here at home because there's plenty of work to do -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: Casey, I just get overwhelmed looking over your shoulder at the work that needs to be done. And, you know, it was great story that you're saying but as you look behind you, the amount of work that needs to take place is certainly more than an individual can grasp.

WIAN: Absolutely. And it's even bigger than we first thought, Drew. The initial estimates of this tornado were that it stretched six miles through the community of Joplin. But we drove from one end of where the devastation started to the other today. And it actually was three miles west of here, nine miles east, 12 miles swath of devastation. About twice what the original estimates were, Drew.

GRIFFIN: Incredible. Casey, thanks for that. Tonight at 8:00 right here on CNN, we have a one hour special on this tornado in Joplin tornado. In Tuscaloosa, Alabama is an important part of that story. Why? Because exactly one month ago, an F-5 tornado moved down a giant section of that city. The agonizing recovery efforts there offer a glimpse of what Joplin is now up against.

CNN's David Mattingly joins us live from Tuscaloosa with a preview of your special tonight, David.

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right Drew, here in Tuscaloosa, the people of Joplin can look here and in some ways see their future. There have been some very significant steps forward. The streets are now clear. The water is back on. And electricity is being restored to neighborhoods by the day. But there are also some significant things to point out like the house behind me. There are very large areas where it looks like the tornado just hit yesterday. I had a long conversation with the mayor of Tuscaloosa and he tells me that now the time has come for a lot of tough decisions to be made by individuals on what they're going to do and the city has some tough decisions to make as well.

MAYOR WALT MADDOX, TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA: We've moved 300,000 cubic yards, yet, when you go around Tuscaloosa, it still looks like we were hit by this tornado yesterday. And that is difficult because you hurt. You hurt for the people who have lost so much and there's just no easy path out of this and you have to be prepared for this long and arduous road.

MATTINGLY: That is such an underestimate there, a long and arduous road indeed. But what we've seen is that the city of Joplin and the city of Tuscaloosa are linked not just in tragedy but in charity as well. There was actually a charity fund-raiser going on in Joplin for Tuscaloosa at the time that the tornado hit there. And take a look at this video. This happened today. A truck load of aid from Alabama now arriving in Joplin. I talked to so many people here about the things they have learned about their fellow man and it all goes back to the charity and the generosity that they have seen as they try to put their lives back together and one thing, one bit of advice that several people tell me to give to the people of Joplin from Tuscaloosa, Drew, is that do not turn down anyone who wants to help.

GRIFFIN: David, thanks. We'll see you tonight at 8:00. CNN presents special is called a twister's fury in the path of destruction, it airs tonight at 8:00 Eastern right here on CNN.

Another attack on NATO forces in Afghanistan with the Taliban taking credit. We're going to have a live report from Pakistan, next.

And later, a special report on a Florida man released from prison after spending 27 years for a crime he didn't commit. We'll going to show you why people are saying this guy could, could be the next Johnny Cash.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: We're covering breaking news here in Atlanta, Atlanta- Hartsfield, Jackson. You're looking at a delta jet, regional jet that apparently had some sort of fire when it landed just about 20 or so minutes ago. That's Delta flight 2284. It is on a runway. We have a picture that we want to show you taken from one of our viewers Kalel Dunst who took this picture from a hotel across from the airport just as that rescue crews were getting there. We believe those are passengers who are exiting the back of the plane. You can see the ramp at the back of the plane has been extended. And the door is open, and passengers are coming out. A tire, we believe, may have caught fire. The good news here, nobody hurt as far as we know. The passengers have been evacuated as far as we know and according to the airport from the airport's John Kennedy, the airplanes are now, the runways are clear, normal operations continue at the airport. So, we'll continue to follow this breaking news, give you some more pictures but again, it is news that has ended well as this plane has landed here at Atlanta-Hartsfield Jackson airport.

Well, there has been another attack on NATO forces in Afghanistan, the Taliban taking credit. Among the targets was the NATO commander of coalition forces in north Afghanistan. He was wounded. Seven others are dead. Stan Grant has the latest on how a suicide bomber once again was able to get in and get close to NATO forces.

STAN GRANT, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The Taliban says, it has specifically targeted this high level meeting between international and Afghan officials in northern Afghanistan. The militants saying they wanted to disrupt any plans to launch a military offensive against it. Now, inside the meeting was the head of all of NATO forces in northern Afghanistan, German General Marcus Kneip, he, we understand has been injured, those injuries are not life threatening, he has survived. Unfortunate though, some of his troops, a German's foreign minister describe this attack as barbaric. Also, the regional police chief, General Dawood, now, he is seen as a significant and powerful figure in the region, a former military commander in the northern alliance which fought the Taliban in the days living up to and after the U.S. late invasion in 2001. And this attack complicates an already confusing and complicated picture inside Afghanistan.

U.S. troops are preparing to withdraw or draw it down at least in the coming months. NATO forces also looking at handing over responsibility for security to Afghans. At the same time, there are these -- talks between the Taliban and government there, and U.S. forces as well to try to reconcile the militants with the rest of the country. Now, at the same time, there's been a spate of attacks across the border in Pakistan as well in the weeks since Osama Bin Laden's death also targeting American, NATO and Pakistani troops and installations here as well as in NATO supply lines. A very complicated picture caught in the middle ordinary Afghan and Pakistani civilians and of course, international troops as well around 200 troops killed in Afghanistan so far this year. Stan Grant, CNN, Islamabad, Pakistan.

GRIFFIN: And just briefly, we want to return briefly to our breaking news. We have an additional information from Delta. And I correct a mistake I made just a few minutes ago. That is an MD-88. I'm looking at a rather small screen here. But that is an MD-88 flown by Delta from Pittsburgh to Atlanta here. And we're told by the airline, 43 passengers and five crew on board landed at 4:14 p.m. After the brakes overheated, passengers were evacuated via emergency slides under the taxiway. No reports of injury. All passengers have been bused to the terminal. That's according to Delta's corporate communications. This is the still photo of what it looked like a little bit scary moment I'm sure for the people who are onboard that flight but this is what we're told from the airline that what you're seeing are brakes overheating, the airport itself open. Runways clear, operating normally. We'll continue to follow that as warrants.

In the meantime, so who do you think does better with the ladies? Happy guys or those dark and brooding type? It turns out a smile isn't such turn on after all. At least, that's what we're going to ask Wendy Welsh about. Wendy, I'm shaking my head. Stand by. But first...

DR. WENDY WALSH, HUMAN BEHAVIOR EXPERT: OK. GRIFFIN: ...despite glimmers of hope in some sectors of the economy when it comes to real estate, times are very tough. So, what can you do if your house is on the market? Christine Romans has some tips in tonight's edition "Smart is the New Rich."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Yvonne Cammaro and her husband are looking to sell their home in western New York.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

YVONNE CAMMARO, WANTS TO SELL HER HOUSE: 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?

CAMMARO: Yes. When we re-did the kitchen and we fenced in the whole backyard.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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 Stephen Saint Onge, home and style designer and author of "No Place Like Home."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

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.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

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 as you've got this great light fixture that you guys obviously put is the center the table.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

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

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS (voice-over): And perhaps at the end of the day, the most important thing to keep in mind, it's all about coming home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ONGE: There are simple things that create that mental illusion for people coming in as a perspective buyer to say I can see myself living in this home. And that's really key.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Christine Romans, CNN, New York.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: You know, surviving a tornado, a massive flood doesn't mean the ordeal is over. For many, the mental wounds can last well beyond the initial trauma. Our human behavior expert Dr. Wendy Walsh is here. And Wendy, I think we've even seen some of this already in Joplin. The survivors just walking around not knowing what to do. What do you do to pick up, do the work and carry on?

WALSH: This is really what you're talking about is the first stage of trauma which is kind of numbness. And it's really crucial that people do a number of things in this stage to stave off the potential for a full blown Posttraumatic Stress Disorder which has we know can last decades or a lifetime. And that problem with integrating these painful memories with a new life without the stressors. So, some of the things people can do is make sure they talk about it. This is especially hard for men because men aren't accustom to as we call tending and befriending like women do.

So, it's very important for guys to talk about what they're feeling, talk about what they saw, talk about their experiences and their feelings of loss. Second thing, don't be alone. That's sort of a duh to me but it's really important that people gather together, share their stories and integrate the whole experience. And third, you know, all kinds of research shows that the best way to stave off depression and stress and anxiety is to give back. So, give a helping hand is one generous way that you can prevent Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.

GRIFFIN: You know, and I've seen that in action, more on hurricane. Some guy's Barner (ph), house gets wiped out, he goes down the street and helps an elderly person recover, just makes him feel like he's doing something good. It's good stuff.

WALSH: Yes, it's wonderful, it's the way that we're kind of healing ourselves as we help heal others.

GRIFFIN: All right. Now, we're talking about, he was a good guy. I want to talk about the bad boys, right? A new study out applies to the old saying that nice guys finish last especially when it comes to getting girls. What is this about?

WALSH: Well, this is a small study out of the University of British Columbia. So, take it for you will. It's those Canadians, you know. And it basically look, showed women a lot of different photographs of men. Some of the same men but using different expressions. And they asked the women not who they would like to have a relationship with and marry and have kids with. But basically, who they would want to have a romp with. And they discovered that the more brooding and angry the man, it denoted kind of power or that she wanted to maybe save him in some way. So, anyway, he was definitely more attractive if he had a bad boy face from this one small study.

GRIFFIN: Yes. All right. Hey, here's something I don't get. Moms descending on Georgia this week to protest a public nudity law. Here's the part I don't get. It's because of this ban on breastfeeding, any child over the age of two. What makes sense about this law? Why it was an -- I mean, we have to do a behavioral study on the politicians who pass this law I think.

WALSH: Exactly. You know, these lawmakers are a bunch of boobs. What they forgotten -- hey, listen, I nursed each of my children for three years each. So, I was a dairy queen for six years. I would have clearly been breaking the law in Georgia, had I gone there because when the kids are hungry, they're going to eat. But the real problem is that our culture has sexualized the breast so much. Remember, breasts have a day job and a night job. Neither of them pay very well by the way. But we have to understand that this isn't a bodily fluid that's a waste product. This is not urine. This is food. And body builders would covet this stuff if they could get a hold of this protein. So, I think it's a crazy law, that if children are hungry and need to be nursed, you know, and -- gather past, most children had full term nursing, that was about three to five years.

GRIFFIN: Wow.

WALSH: What can I say? Catch up, Georgia.

GRIFFIN: I just can't believe it was that big of a problem anywhere this thing was passed. It just seems ridiculous to me.

WALSH: Exactly. It was one isolated incident of one lawmaker probably seeing something that disturbed them because they were still confusing the breast with sex only. GRIFFIN: All right. Wendy, thanks for all of the tips, all the help and all the observations. Have a good weekend.

WALSH: Good to see you.

GRIFFIN: Well, in addition to our world there, this Memorial Day weekend, we also remember thousands of widows across this country. One young woman who became a widow at the age of 21, she went on to built a sisterhood for those just like her. It's an uplifting story, and it's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: An update now on breaking news from Hartsfield-Jackson Airport here in Atlanta. We're getting new information from Delta Airlines and the FAA. Delta says the brakes overheated on that flight, flight 2284 from Pittsburgh, as it was landing last hour. 44 passengers, five crew members on board. Earlier, the FAA reported the plane also blew a tire. Fire crews were called and they doused the plane. The passengers had to be evacuated onto the taxiway using emergency slides. Some scary moments for the people on board that flight obviously, but Delta tells us no reports of injuries. This is -- one of our viewers took this flight from a hotel from a hotel across from the airport. You can see the smoke coming up from new the tire. The flight, 2284, is an MD-88 originating in Pittsburgh. Again, blew a tire on landing, caught fire and all aboard, 44 passengers, five crews evacuated. Obviously, scary moments for everybody there as the crews had to come racing out to the scene to make sure to douse those flames before they could spread any farther. Overheated brakes is what we're talking about.

In Missouri, the death toll in Joplin, risen again after last Sunday's tornado. 142 people now confirmed dead from that F-5 twister. 100 still missing. President Obama scheduled to tour the devastation Sunday and meet with some of the victims.

Taliban militants say they specifically targeted a high-level meeting between NATO and Afghan officials in northern Afghanistan today. Seven people were killed, nine others hurt when a suicide bomber blew himself up. Among the wounded was the target, a German head of NATO's northern Afghanistan command. He's said to be in stable condition now.

President Obama is headed back to Washington this hour. He wrapped up a six-day trip to Europe today in Poland, spotlighting the country's 1980s transition to democracy as a model for nations across North Africa and the Middle East. He held meetings with Poland's president, prime minister as well as veterans of the Solidarity Labor Movement, the movement credited with ending communism in Poland.

Just in time for Memorial Day and your road trip, the gas prices are falling throughout the country. The national average now at 3.81 for a gallon of regular, down from 3.99 just a couple weeks ago. But you are still paying more than a dollar higher than you were last year.

He was the man who made this song famous back in 1970. (SINGING)

GRIFFIN: He's a poet and musician. Gil Scott-Heron, he died Friday at the age of 62, called by many the godfather of rap. Scott-Heron delivered social and political messages through music and spoken word. He rose to fame in '60s and '70s, remained an influential force, releasing a final album last year. In 2008, Scott-Heron revealed that he had contracted HIV.

This weekend, Americans remember our fallen heroes. But for thousands of widows across the country, every day is their memorial day. Karen Davis lost her husband at 21 and then she went to build a sisterhood for those like her, determined to turn their grief into triumph and survival. That's why she's this week's "CNN Hero."

(CNN HERO)

GRIFFIN: Karen's organization has connected nearly 800 widows through her online community and retreats. To nominate someone you know is making a big difference in your community, go to CNNheroes.com.

(SINGING)

GRIFFIN: That man's voice has been compared to that of Johnny Cash. But why is this 52 year old just beginning his singing career? Because more than half of his life was spent in prison for a crime he did not do.

(SINGING)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: A Florida man who spent 27 years in prison for a murder he didn't commit now is trying to fulfill a long-delayed dream. William Dillon was just a teenager when he was put behind bars for killing a man in Florida. Three years ago, a DNA test finally proved he didn't do it and he was released. Now some say he could be the next Johnny Cash.

Here's CNN's John Zarrella.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(MUSIC)

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): His studio is in a downstairs room of his North Carolina home.

(SINGING)

ZARRELLA: In a couple months. William Michael Dillon will turn 52. By now, a career as a singer/songwriter should be well established but Dillon is just getting started.

(SINGING)

ZARRELLA: His single, "Black Robes and Lawyers," will be released on iTunes next month. So far, he's got just one concert under his belt.

BILL BILLON, FREED FROM PRISON BY DNA EVIDENCE: I wanted people to hear it. I want them to hear the song. I want them to hear me sing. I want to play to them and I want them to feel it.

ZARRELLA: Those who have heard him say his voice and songs remind them of the late Johnny cash.

(MUSIC)

When Chicago music producer, Jim Tullio, first heard Dillon sing, he was stunned.

JIM TULLIO, MUSIC PRODUCER: It turns out that he's fantastic. He's truly a great singer.

ZARRELLA: An instant fan, Tullio produced Dillon's first yet-to-be- released C.D.

(on camera): The talented, music-loving Bill Dillon you see here today is a man making up for lost time. You see, 30 years ago, right here in the brush behind this beach, a murder turned Bill Dillon's life into a nightmare.

(voice-over): This is on Canova Beach on Florida's east coast. In 1981, police found the body of a 40-year-old man in the thick brush, beaten to death. With no other suspects, they focused on a teenager, Bill Dillon.

DILLON: My personal opinion is that they knew I was innocent and it didn't matter to them.

SETH MILLER, INNOCENCE PROJECT OF FLORIDA: In Bill Dillon's case there was so much evidence that pointed away from him having committed this crime. It was just rejected by law enforcement because they had their guy and were sticking to it.

ZARRELLA (on camera): It was convenient.

MILLER: He was convenient.

ZARRELLA (voice-over): Dillon was convicted and sent here to State's Prison at Starke (ph), called by the inmate's "Florida's last stop."

It wasn't long after that, the witnesses recanted their stories. The evidence fell apart but no one listened. More than once, Dillon contemplated suicide.

DILLON: What got me through was just that that part of me that says don't let them win. If you die and kill yourself, they will win.

ZARRELLA: On the inside, he learned to play the guitar. In his studio, dozens of songs written in prison. He wrote "Black Robes and Lawyers" on toilet paper.

DILLON: This is something I wrote called "The Mother Son." It's written on a calendar from prison.

ZARRELLA: Dillon spent more than a quarter of a century in hell before DNA evidence proved what he knew all along, he was innocent. Under Florida law, he was eligible for $50,000 for every year he spent locked up, $1,350,000. Florida would do right for bill Dillon or would it?

(SINGING)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN: When we come back --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELLYN BOGDANOFF, FLORIDA STATE SENATE: This is an issue of government at its worst, government -- the arrogance of government.

(SINGING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: 27 years behind bars. 27 years wrongly convicted. Dillon is free and broke. How much is the state of Florida offering him for its terrible mistake? We'll be right back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(SINGING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: William Dillon spent 25 years behind bars for a murder he didn't do. Now, he's trying to launch a career in music. But what about all those years the innocent man spent behind bars? The state of Florida, so far, is saying tough luck.

Here again is John Zarrella.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(SINGING)

ZARRELLA: Last month, bill Dillon sang at a fund-raiser in New York for the Innocence Project, which champions the cases of those wrongfully imprisoned. Dillon was one of those.

(SINGING)

ZARRELLA: DNA evidence freed him after 27 years spent in a Florida prison for a murder he didn't commit. It was there that Dillon wrote songs and learned to play the guitar. His songs are about life on the inside.

DILLON: I think the one I cherish the most is "Black Robes." It's the first song that I wrote and it's about my incarceration.

ZARRELLA: When he was released in 2008, Dillon expected Florida would do the right thing. Under state law, he was eligible for $50,000 a year for each year he spent in prison. So far, he hasn't seen a dime.

DILLON: You know how I live my life? I have to rely on other people. I relied on other people since I was released from prison. I have nothing for myself, not a thing.

ZARRELLA: So why hasn't bill Dillon gotten his money?

(on camera): Florida's compensation statue has a clause called the Clean Hands Provision. If you had any prior felony conviction, no matter how minor, you are not eligible for the money.

DILLON: When I was 19 years old, I got caught with a Quaalude and a joint in my pocket with nine college kids coming from a bottle club at 4:00 in the morning.

ZARRELLA (voice-over): Possession of the pill was a felony. Dillon got probation.

MILLER: That one Quaalude bill absolves the state of responsibility of paying him for 27 years in prison for someone else's crime.

ZARRELLA: So now, Bill Dillon waits. He gets a kick out of playing video games that weren't around when he went to prison.

DILLON: I see why kids don't do nothing.

ZARRELLA: He waits for one more avenue of hope, a claims bill for his case that must pass the Florida legislature. The problem is, the Senate passed it this year, not the House.

Even though state Senator Ellyn Bogdanoff was a sponsor of the compensation legislation and Clean Hands Provision, she believes Dillon's case is an injustice.

BOGDANOFF: This is an issue of government at its worst, government -- the arrogance of government to put somebody in prison for 25 years and not apologize or not say we're going to compensate you for the time that you spent.

ZARRELLA: Even if the claims bill passes at $810,000, it's far less than the $1.3 million he would have gotten if not for that single Quaalude.

As for the murder case, an investigation was reopened.

As for Bill Dillon, he's not looking back.

(SINGING)

ZARRELLA: He's got a single coming out on iTunes next week and hopes to have his C.D. released soon. Maybe, just maybe, Bill Dillon will finally get a break. John Zarrella, CNN, Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina.

(SINGING)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN: There are laws providing some form of compensation for the wrongly convicted in 25 states, plus Washington, D.C. Florida is the only state that says anyone with a prior felony doesn't get a dime, even if they didn't do the crime.

When we come back, a young man is proving a doctor wrong after being told he would never walk again. It's an amazing story. We'll have it for you.

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GRIFFIN: There has been a large fire this afternoon in North Carolina near a town called Hudson. This is a rural area in Caldwell County, which is west of Greensboro and east of Asheville. We're being told that this is a chemical coatings company in Caldwell County. The fire and smoke have shut down a highway there, 321, and forced evacuations of homes and businesses within two miles of this facility. We haven't been told exactly why the evacuations, what kind of hazardous material was involved. But apparently, just from the live pictures that we are seeing there, the fire crews, extensive fire crews do have control of this fire. And you can see the building has pretty much been destroyed as the fire crews attack it from all sides. We'll keep an eye on this and let you know. But so far, I'm not seeing any reports of any injuries in this, but again, this is live pictures coming in from Caldwell County, North Carolina where there's been a large, large fire this afternoon.

Well, each week, in our "Human Factor" series, we look at ordinary people who are accomplishing extraordinary things. This week, our Dr. Sanjay Gupta introduces us to a young guy who's proving wrong when a doctor told him you're never going to walk again.

(HUMAN FACTOR)

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GRIFFIN: I want to quickly bring you up to date on two breaking news stories we're working on this afternoon. The first one is that Delta jet, an MD-88, which landed in Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. We're told that the brakes were smoking and firing, and passengers had to be taken off that plane. They're all OK. The other developing story is out of North Carolina where there's been a large fire. Fortunately, nobody hurt there.

I'm Drew Griffin in Atlanta. "THE CNN SITUATION ROOM" starts right now with Wolf Blitzer.