Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Flooded Souris River Swallowing Minot, North Dakota; Same Sex Marriage Legal in New York; Boston Couple Quit Jobs, Wiped Out Savings; Woman Jumps on Car to Stop Alleged Thieves; Woman Arrested for Videotaping Police from Front Yard; CNN Remembers Nick Charles; Joe Jackson Interviewed About Michael

Aired June 25, 2011 - 17:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Right now on CNN, imagine hearing this, I now pronounce you husband and husband, or wife and wife? Just the possibility of those words, cheers from some, jeers from others. Will same sex marriage stick this time in the most populous state in the union? We will explore.

Plus, customer first, you know, those are fighting words. That's what this woman said, when she takes a law into her own hands, single handedly takes down some shoplifting crooks, what was she thinking? She's live here. Plus another brush with the law with another woman.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: I was observing what they were doing and they're arresting me? I don't understand what's going on. I did nothing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: You know, but the cops aren't on her side in this one, do they got do far when they arrest her for recording them on her own front yard or was she intruding on police business?

Hello everyone. I'm Don Lemon, live at the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta. The news starts right now. And right now, a big chunk of an American City is being wiped out. Record flooding is sweeping through Minot, North Dakota. It's not stopping either. The muddy water will keep getting deeper and deeper over the next several hours and won't crest until sometime tonight or tomorrow. So, let's get straight to it now. And CNN's Jim Spellman is on the ground. Jim, this is incredible, how much worse can it get?

JIM SPELLMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I know, Don, you just take a look at this. You can't even tell it right now, you might think you're looking at a pond or a lake or something. There's a railroad track that goes under here. The road goes down underneath and this is one of the main intersections here in downtown Minot right next to city hall. Now, it was reduced to basically a lake, like most of the downtown area of Minot here. Earlier today, we got to take a tour with the National Guard into the flood zone, and it's just block after block, mile after mile of houses like this. Maybe 4,000 homes destroyed from this water. It's just unbelievable. Like you said, Don, it's going to crest there tonight. A little bit of good news, it's now actually only expected to go up a few more inches, the bad news Don is that this water can stay nearly this high until at least next weekend. So, even though right now, some of the dikes are holding -- the dikes go around vital infrastructure, thus are holding so far, but a week of that kind of pressure on all this is bound to cause some problems. You can see right now, already, they're getting some leakage behind. Some of these and they're pumping. They step down and pumping out of the storm drain. They're going to have to keep doing this, working 24 hours a day for at least the next week -- Don.

LEMON: Hey, let's talk about this Broadway bridge, Jim. It is critically important to connect the two halves of the town. Can they keep it open?

SPELLMAN: Yes. So far, they're doing pretty well, there. We got a chance to go there. And that's the epicenter of this flood. There's this massive amounts of water on the other side of the temporary dike that they've build there. All week, they have been adding to it and they continue to work around the clock. They've been forced to just any drive part of town, maybe there's a hillside or an open field, they're digging into with big backhoes, calling up clay -- dump tracks, getting it down there and adding it to the top of these levees. Up and back to hold back this pressure. Like I said, a week of this pressure against this hastily constructed dirt levees. It's going to be difficult to keep them there and that bridge is so vital. That links hospitals, airport, the National Guard, everybody is doing their work across that bridge. It's going to be even worse if they loosen up. But so far, it's holding up.

LEMON: Hey, before I let you go, one quick question, do they have the resources to deal with this type of disaster in Minot, Jim?

SPELLMAN: They have about 750 national guardsmen here plus everybody, I mean, every police officer and fireman is out on the scene. What they have really run out of this is time. This water came from Canada, from snow melt and heavy rain, and it just rose up so fast. Yesterday, we were doing live shots yesterday, down here on this area down here. It's hard to picture it now, but we were right next to a busy intersection right here, and now it's just a lake. It came up so fast, Don. We were putting stakes in the ground to mark the progress of the water and a three-foot stake would be covered in just a couple of hours, and we would do it again to watch the progress, until we just run out of our live shot location. With that kind of water coming in that pass, there was such a large area. There's only so much they can do.

LEMON: It's unbelievable. Jim, thank you very much. Stand by. I'm sure we'll be getting back to you, what a disaster right there. Let's move on now to our top stories.

And in the headlines tonight, Casey Anthony's murder trial in Orlando came to an abrupt halt today almost before it could even get started. The judge said, it was a legal issue, a legal issue had come up, did not say what it was. The trial is now set to resume Monday morning, much more on this week's dramatic testimony coming up tonight at 10:00 p.m. Eastern right here in the CNN Newsroom.

Investigators say, at least, two people were killed when a tractor trailer hit an Amtrak train near Lovelock, Nevada. They're still confirming now that how many people were injured from the collision on Friday, our affiliate KRNV reports that the hospital admitted nine people from the accident, two of whom were in critical condition, the train was carrying a total of 218 passengers and crew.

A beloved former member of the CNN family has died. Nick Charles was CNN's very first sports anchor. He shared hosting duties on "Sports Tonight" with Fred Hickman for two decades. Charles died from bladder cancer this morning. He was 64-years-old, and he will be missed.

History of another kind is being made in New York State. Thirty days from now, gay couples will be allowed to legally marry. Late last night, New York became the latest and the largest state to legalize same-sex marriage, takes effect in late July.

I want to bring in now, Attorney Lisa -- she joins us from Los Angeles. How Lisa? So, six states and the District of Columbia now recognize the right of same-sex couples to marry. How important is this that New York has crossed that line?

LISA BONNER, ATTORNEY: It's a wonderful opportunity for same-sex couples to be possibly marching to the alter in about 30 days. And I'm so excited that it's passed. It's something that Governor Cuomo ran on his platform and he did it within four months.

LEMON: Yes. It's interesting because he was barely in office for five minutes. Now, the question is a lot of people are saying, they're going to fight to repeal this, they're going to fight to overturn it. Legally, what's the legal ramifications here and what's the possibility of that, Lisa?

BONNER: Well, they absolutely can challenge the constitutionality of it. And I would suspect that that would happen. That certainly happens in California. And it's happen in the other state. So it's a possibility and that could be delayed but right now, we're celebrating the monumental decision that was passed last night by a republican Senate, which is amazing.

LEMON: Yes. So listen, here's the thing. I said next up to follow here, with possibly, Maryland, Maine, Oregon, Minnesota, California, Illinois, Hawaii, Washington, Delaware and New Jersey. Those are the states where they're saying, it may happen soon, or it's going to be at least coming up for some consideration here. The interesting thing, though, a lot of people say they want this because they want the same tax breaks and benefits as heterosexual couples. But that only applies to the states. Does that apply federally?

BONNER: No, and that's a very big problem for the same-sex couples. Because it is not recognize on the federal level. Marriage is governed by the state. It's under the state jurisdiction. So, when you are in a state that absolutely recognizes the same-sex marriage, you have absolutely no problem. But if you were to move from New York to California, let's say, you would have a problem and also, you have a problem when you are filing your federal income tax with the IRS because it's not recognized on a federal level.

LEMON: Lisa Bonner. Good information. Thank you very much for coming in. I want to tell you that New York is now the sixth state...

BONNER: Thank you for having me.

LEMON: You're welcome -- to legalize same-sex marriage. It joins, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont and New Hampshire. The District of Columbia also allows same-sex marriages.

More than 1,600 people have died in Syria since March. And CNN's Hala Gorani is now in the country and was able to walk among a group that supports Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

(CHANTING)

And later on here on CNN, Joe Jackson, the father of the legendary Michael Jackson is going to join us to talk about his famous son on the second anniversary of his death. And many of you are looking for information, you may want to comment on this story or others, including the same-sex marriage story. Just go to Facebook, cnn.com/Don or on Foursquare as well. If you want to find out more about me and more about the broadcast business, and same-sex marriage and other issues. Check out my new book, it's called "Transparent." It's on bookshelves now, Barnes & Noble and at Amazon.com.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: So who's doing the killing? Who's doing the killing?

FAYSSAL MEKDAD, SYRIAN DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER: The killing was initiated and is still going on by these extremist groups.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: We go to Syria now where the government has kept CNN's cameras and reporters out pretty much since the anti-government uprising began there in March. That's now changed. We have crews in Syria now, although they are being closely watched by government minders. Here's Hala Gorani on her first walk through Damascus in March.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(CHANTING)

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: OK. So this young man who -- he just came out of the mosque, and he said he doesn't want any trouble. The country with Bashar. They're a small group of pro- government demonstrators there, expressing their support for the regime.

(SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE) OK, his name is Ashar (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE

GORANI: This young man is saying people are getting money...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

GORANI: OK -- from outside in order to foment this unrest.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

(CHANTING)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: How's walking among a group that supports President Bashar al- Assad. Since March, more than 1,600 people have died, mostly of them anti-government protesters, that's according to a human rights group.

A southwest pilot accidentally lets his private conversation go public, ranting on air traffic control airwaves for all to hear.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PILOT: I still wouldn't want anyone to know if I (BLEEP), I mean there's all these (BLEEP) old dudes and grannies and there's like maybe a handful of cute chicks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Sounds like a fleeing (ph) huh? Well, there's more to learn from this unintended cockpit confession. We're going to talk about it with our human behavior expert Dr. Wendy Walsh.

But first this, you know, in these tough economic times, the last thing financial advisers might recommend is quitting your office job and starting a business with a high failure rate. But that's just what a Boston couple did. And so far, their upscale restaurant is paying dividends. Christine Romans has their story in tonight's edition of "Smart is the New Rich."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tse Wei Lim and Diana Kudayarova married in barely 30, never went to cooking school and never owned a business.

TSE WEI LIM, BUSINESS OWNER: My parents were horrified that we were doing this. Because, you know, she has a PH.D., and I'm at least a college grad, right?

DIANA KUDAYAROVA, BUSINESS OWNER: It's a waste of education. LIM: Yes.

ROMANS: But the two wanted a hands-on project they could do together.

KUDAYAROVA: You know, the interest rates were very low.

LIM: Yes.

KUDAYAROVA: So, that helps. We had good jobs quite a while before starting this, so we used our savings.

ROMANS: They cashed in nearly $200,000, took out a second mortgage and forever foodies, taught themselves to cook using friends as taste testers. It took a year to launch a plan that integrated low fixed costs. For starters, they found cheap rental space down a back alley.

KUDAYAROVA: Keeping it a little bit underground makes it cooler.

ROMANS: They did most repairs themselves.

LIM: We spent weeks just chipping out all the cracked and chipped panes.

ROMANS: They were frugal with the interior.

LIM: We went to -- and bought a bunch of chairs.

ROMANS: And only offer a limited tasting menu.

LIM: That enables us to cut down on food waste quite a bit.

ROMANS: Instead of pricey ads, they blog and tweet.

KUDAYAROVA: I added a little column that kind of talks about our cocktails.

ROMANS: The crowd is young and splurging. The couple hasn't recouped construction costs but they have positive cash flow and they say, never missed a payroll. Still, there's been a learning curve.

KUDAYAROVA: (INAUDIBLE) Some of them are still here, but most of them are not.

ROMANS: Constant worries.

LIM: Most recently the fact that our AC wasn't up to scratch. Two weeks ago, it was where am I going to get meat from?

ROMANS: And saved words for others who've (INAUDIBLE).

LIM: We will capitalize, be prepared to kill your babies. You just have to let go a lot of your ideas.

KUDAYAROVA: We're trying to stick, so our guns will being flexible.

Christine Romans, CNN, New York. (END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: All right, Christine. Being flexible is quite an understatement, just days after we've found an SUV crash into a restaurant, no one was hurt, but the restaurant will be closed for at least a couple of weeks.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PILOT: Eleven f -- (bleep) over the top f -- a -- f -- homosexuals and a granny. Eleven. I mean think of the odds of that. I thought I was in Chicago which is party land. After that, it was just a continuous stream of gays and grannies and grandees.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Dude, man. That pilot's rant was heard over air traffic control, now Southwest Airlines is in damage control trying to explain why he wasn't fired for his offensive comments. They were not supposed to be heard beyond the cockpit, but his microphone became stock. I guess he didn't know it obviously. So, why is this pilot view women in two categories, doable and not doable? Is it a sign of misogyny or just an honest male conversation.

So, let's talk to our human behavior expert, I can see that twice -- Dr. Wendy Walsh. So, Wendy, all right. Before we get to that, is it misogyny.

DR. WENDY WALSH, PSYCHOLOGIST: Uh-huh.

LEMON: Is this the way that most people talk, especially most guys but we just aren't privy to the conversation?

WALSH: Yes. I think this is just guy talk. Look, studies show that while men are initially visually stimulated by women, those that want to settle down, of course look for kind and intelligent women. But they don't say, oh, the flight attendants on this flight seems so kind and so intelligent. They say, are they doable or not?

LEMON: Yes. Are they hot or not?

WALSH: Are they hot or not?

LEMON: Right.

WALSH: It's just guys playing but inappropriate in the workplace.

LEMON: All right. So, you don't think there's anything wrong with it? He shouldn't have been saying it in the workplace, but he wasn't doing anything wrong.

WALSH: Well, the only thing I think wrong about this Don, is that he was saying it while he was flying a plane that I could have been a passenger on. Because you know, as they say, men are born with two heads but only enough blood to serve one at a time. So, I want him thinking about flying that plane and that's about it when he's working.

LEMON: The control room was like three floors down and I could hear the screaming from here. I'm just telling you, everybody's like, whoa, I can't believe she said that. Again, you make me turn red, I'm blushing.

All right. So, a rusting, whatever you want to call it. From pilot to passengers. There's an older man nicknamed Terminal. We've seen it. He wears his kempe women's clothing on his flights. Is this man mentally ill? There's a picture of him right there or what motivates him, is it attention?

WALSH: Well, I have never met him and I have never assessed him. But on first glance, I would say, this is just pure exhibitionism, he gets a high, he gets a little charge by people looking at him. And that's what this is. I just think it's fascinating that one airline pulled a guy off the flight one week for not pulling up as saggy pants and then they let this guy on in women's underwear. So, where are the rules? Shouldn't we have a dress code on planes? That's what I want to know.

LEMON: Yes. OK. Listen, Wendy, this one is very serious. I want to get to this topic with you.

WALSH: Yes.

LEMON: Several dozen states starting in the 1930s used to forcibly sterilize what were called the feeble minded, usually poor minority women and one of the worst offenders is the state of North Carolina. I want you to listen, Wendy to one victim who was raped at the age of 13 and sterilized by the state at 14.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: They slandered me. They ridiculed and harassed me. They cut me open like I was a hog.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Wendy, the governor held hearings this week to figure out reparations for the victims, several thousands of whom are still living. So, Wendy, how could something like this happen in United States? I mean, it sounds like, something Germany way back when, Nazi tactics.

WALSH: We have to remember that this began in the 1920s when the whole idea of eugenic seemed new and exciting for cultures and societies. It was a different time. And of course, after World War II, when we saw exactly the crazy extremes that Hitler took it to that everyone quickly shut down their programs. North Carolina has lingered for a long time, until the 1970s in fact. So, that's why there's thousands of people still living who have been sterilized. And I have to say, Don, you know, we know this is tragic because this group of course was disproportionately black, disproportionately poor. They were often lied to by social workers who told them that this surgery would be reversible. But on my Facebook page, people are on fire with opinions about who gets to be a parent or not in America citing the case of course of course of Casey Anthony who is, you know, probably an unfit mother and all these others. So, it's an interesting debate, but still we know this was wrong.

LEMON: All right, Wendy. Thank you. And listen, I want you to watch tomorrow night. We appreciate it Wendy, because I want to let our viewers know and you as well, that the woman that you just saw, her name is Elaine Riddick, and Elaine Riddick will be joining us Sunday night 6:30 Eastern here on CNN, Sunday night, 6:30 Eastern. The way she said she learned about how she had been sterilized, of course it's going to rip your heart out. So, make sure you join us tomorrow night. And again, thanks to Wendy Walsh.

A sex trafficker's worst nightmare. In the fall, it's a tiny woman nicknamed "The Terminator." She's a 2010 CNN Hero of the Year. And part of a special documentary airing Sunday night at 8:00 p.m. Eastern. And we'll tell you about her, coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: All this week CNN has been shining a spot light on modern day slavery. In Nepal, one woman has fought to save sex trafficking victims for nearly two decades, helping rescue and rehabilitate more than 12,000 women and girls. That earned her the title of 2010 CNN Hero of the Year.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANURADHA KOIRALA, 2010 CNN HERO OF THE YEAR: In the West, America, Europe, if someone comes and says I want to make your child a prostitute, they would give them one slap or shoot them. But here, families they are tricked all the time. Girls are brought from the villages by people who can lure them and tell them that they're getting a nice job. The border between India and Nepal is the conduit point of trafficking, once they're here, there's no way to escape.

I am Anudradha Koirala, and it is my strong hope to stop every Nepali girl from being trafficked. When you go to the border at this point, we are intercepting four girls to five girls per day. (INAUDIBLE). After the rescue, the girls have taken to my place in Nepal. We started this, rape survivors, trafficking survivors, we take everybody. The girl who is come back from brothels, they are socially, psychologically broken. We give them whatever work they want to do, whatever training they want to do. One day we will really stop it. Trafficking will end. These are all convicted. There is always a small (INAUDIBLE). But today, I have something new in my life. They are my strength.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Actress Demi Moore recently went to Nepal to work with Koirala. And CNN's cameras were there. Make sure you tune in Sunday night at 8:00 p.m. Eastern to see "Nepal's Stolen Children: A CNN Freedom Project Documentary." Want to get you up to date on the headlines. A lot of celebrating in New York today. Last night, the state became the latest and the most populous to legalize same-sex marriage. Governor Andrew Cuomo wasted no time signing the measure into law. It is set to take effect in 30 days. Six states and the District of Columbia now recognize the right of gay couples to marry.

Record flooding in Minot, North Dakota, now threatens to wipe out a large part of the city. About a third of the residents have evacuated. Hundreds of homes are under water, and it's not over. The Souris River came up very quickly and is expected to crest tonight or tomorrow. Officials say the city will have to deal with the high water for at least a week. Residents must now boil water for drinking and cooking because of the flood.

Investigators say at least two people were killed when a tractor trailer hit an Amtrak train in Lovelock, Nevada. They are still confirming how many were injured in Friday's collision. Our affiliate, KRNV, reports one hospital admitted nine people from the accident, two of whom were critical. The train bound for Chicago to California was carrying a total of 218 passengers and crew. A woman leaps onto a moving car to stop thieves and it's all caught on video. Not only will you see it played out but she's here to tell us what she was thinking. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MONIQUE LAWLESS, TRIED TO STOP ALLEGED THIEVES: I told the cashier, do something, they're leaving. She couldn't do anything, so I just told her, watch my purse.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Watch my purse. You know what that means when someone says hold your purse? That means business. Police don't like citizens getting directly involved if they see criminal crime, because it's really dangerous, to be honest. But Monique Lawless was so angry when she saw three men you men allegedly shoplift three cases of beer from a Houston Wal-Mart where she was shopping, she leaped right into action. Look at the video right there. There she is right there. Jumped right up on the hood of that car. She chased them outside and jumped on the car before they sped away. They didn't get far before the police caught them.

And guess what, Monique Lawless joins me now live from Houston.

Monique, I see you've got some black eyes from that incident. I'm going to ask you about that. What were you thinking?

LAWLESS: I was just reacting really. I was mad. I saw these kids walk in there and walking out with beer. I told the cashier, do something, do something. People were standing around. We were all waiting in line to check out, so they heard me telling her and saw me pointing at them and no one was doing anything. So when it became obvious that Wal-Mart couldn't do anything, I just told her, watch my purse and my basket and I took off after them.

LEMON: You weren't afraid that they could have -- you were going to get hurt by the car. They could have beat you or they could have a weapon of some type. You didn't think about that?

LAWLESS: No. When I first saw them, they looked fairly young. I was thinking 19, 18 years old, my kids' age. And when confronted by an adult, my kids are going to stop, and yes, sir, yes, ma'am, no sir, no ma'am. Where these kids didn't have any fear whatsoever or any kind of respect for authority for adults or anybody. They didn't care.

LEMON: Yes. We were just showing the video of them actually getting caught. Listen, did they drag you a little bit -- it looks like in that video you got dragged just for a minute?

LAWLESS: Yes. When I opened the driver's side car door, he took off then and I had a hold of the door and it pulled me forward and I lunged forward and I did a face plant into the asphalt.

LEMON: That's where the black eyes came from?

LAWLESS: Yes.

LEMON: OK.

LAWLESS: That's where the black eyes, the bruised nose, everything.

LEMON: You have some news that you haven't told anyone else. That is?

LAWLESS: I received a Facebook message from family members of the Sylvester boys, and, you know, they apologized to me from the family. They said, you know, we're really, really sorry that you had to go through this event but we're thankful for what you did. We're thankful for your actions, and that they deserve whatever punishment they get. They deserve to be in jail right now and pay for what they did. They were wrong. And I told the family member, thank you, thank you, thank you, because I felt bad. I feel for the family. Everybody's affected by this. Your community is affected, their family, right down the line. And I want to say thank you to that family for reaching out to me and letting me know that they felt like I did the right thing.

LEMON: Why does it mean so much to you to hear from them?

LAWLESS: Because I'm not here to destroy these kids, you know. But I want them to realize that this is -- we're human beings. This is a society that we all want to live in safe and peacefully. We don't want to worry about our kids every time they run down to the park or to the store or to the movies. We don't want to fear for our lives any time, much less in broad daylight on a Sunday, Father's Day at Wal-Mart, in a small town.

LEMON: Yes.

LAWLESS: I want them to know, you can't do this. It's not right. Get a job.

LEMON: Listen, I've got to run here. Just answer yes or no. would you do it again?

LAWLESS: Yes, absolutely.

LEMON: Thank you, Monique Lawless. We appreciate people like you.

LAWLESS: Thank you.

LEMON: Good luck. We're going to check back with you, OK? Give us an update.

LAWLESS: Thank you. God bless you.

LEMON: You as well.

LAWLESS: OK.

LEMON: A woman gets arrested for recording a police incident that took place in her front yard, right in front of her home. This is going to infuriate you, I'm telling you. Police say she was interfering in their business. Did they go too far? Our legal expert, Sunny Hostin, is going to weigh in.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EMILY GOOD, ARRESTED FOR VIDEOTAPING POLICE: -- and they're arresting me!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOOD: I was observing what they were doing and they're arresting me! I don't understand. I don't know what's going on.

(CROSSTALK)

GOOD: I did nothing. I did nothing.

(CROSSTALK)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: A dramatic scene during what appeared to be a routine traffic stop. I want to bring in Sunny Hostin, she's a contributor to "In Session" on our sister network, TruTV.

Sunny, I want to tell you this. This video that we just saw, this woman -- her name is Emily Good. She was arrested last month by Rochester police. She was videotaping a traffic stop from her front yard. The police officer asked her to stop. She then questioned him. She was arrested. I want you to listen to the exchange and then we'll talk about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOOD: It's my right to be in my yard and I'm sorry that you don't feel safe.

(CROSSTALK)

GOOD: All I have is a camera. I'm clearly wearing nothing. I have no weapons.

UNIDENTIFIED POLICE OFFICER: It does not matter what you're not -- you're not listening to our orders right now. We don't feel safe with you standing behind us. You're not moving even a foot further back. You're going to be -- you're going to be --

(CROSSTALK)

GOOD: You want me to move a foot further back?

UNIDENTIFIED POLICE OFFICER: You're going to be under arrest. I've already warned you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Sunny, Emily is going to be charged with criminal charges, criminal charges. She's going to be in court on Monday. How far do you see this going in court?

SUNNY HOSTIN, LEGAL CONTRIBUTOR, IN SESSION: It's hard to tell. She has been charged with a misdemeanor, second degree obstructing governmental administration. This is the law, Don, the police, while they're affecting a traffic stop, that's a public act. It's out there in the open. Certainly, if you are a person that's in your front yard or out in the public and you aren't trespassing, you can videotape. That's OK.

The only time it crosses the line is when you're obstruct justice, when you get in their way. And so that is what the officer was saying. The officer was saying, I was distracted. I was concerned for my safety. That is why I asked her to stop. That is why she was arrested.

If the judge believes that, if the prosecutor believes that, then perhaps this will go forward. But in looking at the videotape, I think a prosecutor will look at this and think, no, she didn't cross the line.

(CROSSTALK)

HOSTIN: She wasn't interfering --

LEMON: So I want to ask you --

HOSTIN: -- and then this case goes away.

LEMON: So Monday, she goes to court. What are the chances of this being dropped? And I want to tell you that here's what the local police commissioner (ph) says, "Obviously, the officers were distracted and concerned about their safety." So do you think it will be dropped on Monday when it goes to court? Can a person legally do this and do you see that -- do you think the judge will say, hey, listen, this woman wasn't up to no good. Do you think it will be dropped?

HOSTIN: It's a judgment call that the prosecution will make, Don. I mean, bottom line is, the law is really clear -- when the police are engaged in a public act, when they are on duty, it's fine for someone to videotape. It's not against the law.

LEMON: All right, this story is far from over. Emily Good is scheduled to be in court on Monday, but first, she will talk to me live, the 7:00 p.m. eastern hour of the CNN NEWSROOM, about an hour and 15 minutes away, we're going to speak to the woman who was arrested in her front yard.

CNN is remembering one of its own sports anchors. His name is Nick Charles. He died of cancer. Legendary boxer, Sugar Ray Leonard, joins me after the break.

But first, Greg Allman has been making music for over four decades. But all of those years of life on the road and rock 'n' roll finally caught up with him. In today's "Human Factor, Dr. Sanjay Gupta gives us a peek into Allman's battle with hepatitis C and liver cancer.

(HUMAN FACTOR)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: I really want everyone to watch this because we're honoring someone that many of us loved here at CNN. As we told you earlier, we lost a beloved member of the CNN family today. Nick Charles was the network's first sports anchor. He died today of cancer at the age of 64. He was here on day one and stayed for more than two decades. He covered everything from the Olympics to the Super Bowl, but boxing was in his blood.

The reason I say that is because I'm joined now by one of the greatest ever, the one and only Sugar Ray Leonard.

Hey, thank you so much for joining us, Sugar Ray. How you doing today? You guys were really good friends. How you doing today with the loss of your friend?

SUGAR RAY LEONARD, BOXING CHAMPION: You know, Don, it came as a shock to me. Nick was such a proud guy, you know? He was such a fighter himself. And he didn't really want to let on that he was ill. In fact, I didn't know the severity of his illness until recently. But Nick was a class act, no question.

LEMON: Yes. It's a standard question, but everyone has them of their dear friends, what are you going to remember most? What are your most memorable moments with him?

LEONARD: Well, you know, whenever I was interviewed by him I always felt kind of not right -- not having the right clothes on, because he was so -- such an impeccable dresser and he was always looking great. When I was around him, I always had a bad hair day --

(LAUGHTER)

-- for some reason.

LEMON: Yes. People have been talking about his hair, in a good way, because he really paid attention to his hair, and his hair was a statement and he knew that.

(LAUGHTER)

LEONARD: He looked so good always. And he was a guy who -- when he interviewed me, you know, I was being interviewed by a professional but also by a friend, and I consider Nick Charles a great friend.

LEMON: Anything you want to say to his family before we go?

LEONARD: You know, I just wanted to let them know that he is thought so well of by the boxing community and by my family.

LEMON: Sugar Ray Leonard, thank you very much.

LEONARD: Thank you, Don.

LEMON: He was -- Nick Charles, 64 years old.

Many of you remember where you were on this day exactly two years ago, the day the world lost the king of pop. I'm talking about Michael Jackson. Now on the second anniversary of his death, I'll speak with his father, Joe Jackson.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(SINGING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Hard to believe it's been two years ago today the world lost that man, Michael Jackson. Those two years have been -- have done little to ease the pain for fans or quiet the persistent questions about how he died. But this is certain -- Jackson was a singular talent, a man who lived big and left behind a legacy of musical excellence.

Today, we're joined by Michael Jackson's father, Joe Jackson.

Thank you for joining us, sir. How are you doing today? Still grieving two years later, I'm sure? JOE JACKSON, FATHER OF MICHAEL JACKSON: I'm fine, thank you. Glad you asked that question, you know. I'm still grieving over Michael because -- I don't know. It's going to take me a long time to get over what happened to him.

LEMON: Why is that? Is it part of the mystery surrounding his death? Because I know you said you believe that, I guess, that was some people conspired to kill him, is that correct?

JACKSON: Michael told his mother and he told his manager, Dieter Wiesner, who is writing a book now, the truth about Michael Jackson. He them they were going to kill him for his publishings. He told his mother that Dieter Wiesner that, but he never did tell me. I didn't know that until after he was dead.

LEMON: Do you know who those people are, who wanted to kill him for his publishings?

JACKSON: We got a great idea who they are, and a lot of other people know who they are as well.

LEMON: You won't say, though?

JACKSON: Don, I didn't say that. I'm not saying -- calling names right now, but you'll know in the book that's coming out.

LEMON: OK. Are you writing a book?

JACKSON: No. Dieter Wiesner wrote the book, who was Michael's manager. He's the one that fired John Ricker (ph).

LEMON: I thought you were talking about a book that has already been out. You're talking about a book to come.

JACKSON: No, no. The one that the whole world should know about, that book.

LEMON: OK.

JACKSON: The truth. The truth.

LEMON: There's been a legal battle between your family and the executors of his estate. Has that been resolved?

JACKSON: No way. Not yet. Not yet. That's why we are striving for justice, because there's more to it than what they're claiming out there. There's somebody else involved. Remember, the doctor was getting paid by somebody else and not by Michael.

LEMON: Yes. So are you anywhere close to agreement with the executors, legal agreement?

JACKSON: That's a hard question you threw at me there, Don, because we're looking for justice. You know, it's very important, and justice has to be served because of the very important -- Michael was known all over the world, behind all borders, and that's why he was trying to build amusement parks all around the world. That's what I'm trying to do, carry out his legacy.

LEMON: OK.

JACKSON: And one thing that --

LEMON: Let's talk quickly about this. Michael's doctor, Conrad Murray, goes on trial in September, manslaughter charges. What do you think deserves to happen to him?

JACKSON: What I hope happens is that justice is done, you know, the right way, the truth, the true justice. That's what I hope, yes.

LEMON: OK. Well listen, I have to ask you this real quickly, and I want to ask you about a venture that you're in. Two years ago, you and I spoke just a couple days, BET Awards after Michael died and you viewed the interview as contentious on my part, and I thought it was contentious on your part, because I asked you a very simple question. I said it's been a tough time for you and your family. We don't have to play it, because we don't have time. You said yes, and? And you just sort of gave me a flippant response, but you thought I was being contentious to you. Why is that?

JACKSON: I don't know why, because I probably was still upset over what happened to Michael, because Michael was a wrongful death to Michael's situation, in his situation.

LEMON: OK. I'll take that as an answer. Thank you for talking about that.

Now, tell us what you're doing. You have a new venture in Vietnam. What's going on? It has something to do with Michael Jackson?

JACKSON: This venture is with Madame Kow (ph) in here and she's the one that did everything possible to make things happen, make things come true for Michael's legacy. His legacy to make theme parks all around the world, but she's the only one to come forward to make it happen. Now what she's doing, she's building five five-star hotels and one seven-star hotel and a theme park. She is doing this on 2,000 acres.

LEMON: And I want to say this, this is going to be reminiscent of Neverland.

And I have to tell you, Mr. Jackson, stand by. I'll tape a little more and we'll air it later. We have to get off the air now.

I'll see you back here at 7:00 p.m. Eastern. We'll keep talking to Joe Jackson and I'll see you then.