Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Woman Lunges at Judge; Casey Anthony to be Freed; Murdoch's Phone Hacking Scandal
Aired July 16, 2011 - 22:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Tonight.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Caylee! Caylee!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Free at last or is she? Will Casey Anthony ever have a moment of peace? We're live from the jail.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm not deserving what they're doing, and they're arresting me. I don't understand what's going on. I did nothing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Rochester police in line or out of control for arresting this woman and this county official, among others. We investigate, you decide.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In my opinion, you know, we have to get to a point where who oversees the overseer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 30 seconds.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: And what was she thinking? Attacking a judge, security officers to the rescue. All caught on camera. We talk to the guy who took her down. It's all right now on CNN.
And good evening, everyone. I'm don lemon. We begin tonight with a story that begs a question, what was she thinking?
A Kentucky woman is in big trouble with the law after she attacks a judge in court. Here's her violent outburst.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUDGE: Ms. Harvick, you will be held in contempt of this court if you're --
MELISSA HARDWICK, PLAINTIFF: I don't care. I haven't done anything to this court. I haven't done anything to him.
JUDGE: She will be arrested for contempt of this court. Go now --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Oh, my. Court security officer, Adam Dodson, the man on the left of your screen was the first to reach the woman. There he is. Her name is Melissa Hardwick and then he took her down. I talked with him just a short while ago, and I asked what the judge said to make Harvick go ballistic.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ADAM DODSON, COURT SECURITY OFFICER (ON THE PHONE): The judge was basically just telling her to stop using foul language and if she kept using foul language in her court, then she would be held and contempt and face more charges. And the lady was very upset already, and she just basically disregarded anything the judge said and continued to talk.
LEMON: You've been doing this for a while now. Have you ever seen anyone react this way, especially towards a judge?
DODSON: I have seen people react this way, but only in training videos and the training they send us to. But not actually in any courtroom I worked in in the three and a half years I've been there.
LEMON: Yes, when you grabbed her and you guys finally subdued her, what happened? Was she remorseful? Did you have to take her away? What happened?
DODSON: She was not remorseful at all actually. I was - had to administer the handcuffs there on the floor. She was resisting arrest the entire time. She was fighting with me, and another bailiff tried to hold her feet, while she was doing that she was sort of fighting with him. So we finally got her handcuffed, picked her up off the floor and walked her out of the courtroom, and she was still using foul language and she actually made another threatening comment to the judge.
LEMON: Did you give her any sort of test afterwards, do you know, if she was under the influence at all? Did she smell of alcohol? Did she seem to be under the influence of something?
DODSON: She was not under the influence of anything that we could tell. She was just very angry. I think she has a history of these type of situations. And she just had it in her mind it didn't matter what we done or anything actually. She was just showing disrespect for the court, for my position, and she was just disregarding anything we were trying to do.
LEMON: Yes, she was there for domestic violence charges against her husband and he watched the whole thing go down, didn't he?
DODSON: Yes, sir. He was actually not shown in the video, but he was standing just to the left of the woman there. And he watched the whole thing. He actually was standing behind the podium and moved the podium out of the way so we could finish the handcuffing process.
LEMON: I can only imagine him saying, see, I told you. All right, thank you Officer Dodson. We really appreciate it, and we're glad that you are OK and the judge as well.
DODSON: Yes, sir, thank you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: And in addition to the domestic violence and contempt of court charges, Hardwick is now also charged with terroristic threatening and resisting arrest.
And at this hour, three journalists are arriving at the Orange County Florida jail to document Casey Anthony's release. She could be free in a matter of hours.
The question is now, when will it happen? Where will she go? Is she in any danger? And can she live anything resembling a normal life when she's freed? Whenever that maybe.
Those reporters will brief the rest of us on what they saw. Jane Velez-Mitchell has been covering the case from the very beginning and she host "Issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell" on HLN. She joins us now from Orlando.
OK, it could be just moments away, Jane. What's going on?
JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HOST, HLN'S "ISSUES": Well, we know there's about 20 protesters outside the Orange County jail, Don, and they have signs like, "Hunt for Caley" and a more sinister one, "Rot in Hell, Burn in Hell."
There are a lot of people that are very angry with Casey Anthony, feel that she got away with murder as a matter of fact, because she was acquitted of the most serious charges. And she is scheduled to be released sometime after midnight.
Of course, they could maybe pull a fast one and release her slightly before midnight. But as you mentioned these three journalists, a still photographer, videographer and a journalist reporter, they are going to go in there and they're going to look at it, they're going to see it and then they're going to come out and tell the rest of the media.
There's about 20 satellite trucks outside the jail. So everybody it seems in the entire world wants to see what's going to happen next. And what's expected to happen is, she's expected to leave in a caravan of vehicles possibly with tinted windows. You will not see her drive away although obviously, the still photographer and the videographer are going to hope to get a shot of her, at least maybe leaving her jail cell, and then she heads to points unknown.
It's speculated that she might go to one of the three private airports in the area, and then just take off on a charter jet to points unknown, or she could go to Orlando International or maybe even Miami, but she is not going to stay here in Orlando proper. Her own attorney Jose Baez said as much.
LEMON: All right, Jane. So, listen, I want to ask you this. And we've -- there was some picture -- we have a live picture from the jail now in Orlando where she's expected to be released from at any moment. And also there were protesters as you mentioned.
There's a live picture there. I know you see the media getting ready. And there are some folks outside as you say. Roll some of the protest video to -- Jane, what did you say, there was a more sinister one.
There we go, "All Profits for Murder, Boycott all of That," that's going on.
I have to ask you this. With all of the attention surrounding this case, is it likely, number one, is she in jeopardy in any way safety wise, and can she really have a peaceful moment once she is released?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Well, her own civil attorney has said she has gotten seven credible death threats. So obviously, there's a tremendous security concern. And there is speculation that wherever she goes, she is going to have to go underground and behave much as people who join the witness protection program behave -- change her name, change her hairstyle, wear a hat --
LEMON: Hey, Jane, one second, one second. I hate to cut you off.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Go ahead.
LEMON: But we were looking at pictures.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Sure, no problem.
LEMON: That was the pool cameras going inside. And we lost it there just for a moment. But those were the photographers and the reporters walking inside as Jane was speaking.
Sorry to cut you off. Continue, Jane. Sorry.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: No, it's happening right now. And it's a very dramatic moment.
Do you realize, Don, that it was exactly three years ago today, July 16th, that she was first arrested? So we have all vicariously lived through this saga for three long years. So the timing of it is just sort of eerie.
The coincidence of her getting out just a couple of hours after three years to the day she was first arrested.
LEMON: Yes.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Again, they really believe that she is going to have to lay low. It's going to be hard for her to do that. She's been in solitary confinement for the last three years mostly, and she's a young 25-year-old woman who as we know, we learned during the trial likes to party. So will she be able to adhere the advice of her own attorneys who are undoubtedly telling her, lay low and asking all of us to respect her privacy. And then of course, there's the big TV interview, if and when that happens.
LEMON: Yes. And Jane, you know, it is really amazing to see all of the coverage of this has gotten. And there you see the protesters in the background on those live pictures. And Jane is reporting just from on the other side where all of this is going on.
Our Jane Velez-Mitchell standing by. Casey Anthony to be released shortly. The reporters are going inside to get pictures of her release. And we will bring it to you if it happens in this hour. But you'll definitely see it on CNN. So make sure you stay tuned.
The host of "Issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell" on our sister network, HLN, standing by for us. You can watch it every night at 7:00.
Thank you, Jane. Maybe we'll see you shortly in this broadcast.
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Thank you, Don.
LEMON: Now this from CNN.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shame on you! Shame on you! Shame on you! Shame on you! Shame on you!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: A media king now fighting for his reputation. You'll see Rupert Murdoch's very public apology, and a man who used to work for one of his newspapers talks to CNN about the scandal involving his London paper. Did management know what its reporters were doing?
And critics say the Rochester New York police, the force there has some explaining to do. Are they protecting people, or is it harassment?
And take a look at these nails. How does she function every day? Well, she'll show us later on in this show. And you're on social media and we are, too. You can reach out to us on Twitter, on Facebook, on CNN.com/Don and on FourSquare.com, as well.
My book is called "Transparent." It's available in E version, get it there or anywhere books are sold.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shame on you! Shame on you! Shame on you! Shame on you! Shame on you!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Now to the scandal that has infected Rupert Murdoch's media empire. Heads are rolling at his Company News Corp and Murdoch forced to do something he's not used to doing, apologize.
He took out gigantic ads in seven British papers today saying, quote, "we are sorry for the phone hacking scandal at the News of the World," the popular tabloid he just shut down and in his own words --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RUPERT MURDOCH, CHAIRMAN AND CEO, NEWS CORPORATION: I'm the founder of the company. I was appalled to find out what happened. I apologize. I have nothing more to say.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Well, the scandal is widening to another Murdoch paper, "The Sunday Times." And now even the FBI is opening an investigation in the United States. The allegations hacking the personal phones of public figures and the not so public from murder victims to dead war heroes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID CAMERON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: And there is a firestorm, if you like, that is engulfing parts of the media, parts of the police, and indeed, our political system's ability to respond.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Murdoch's News Corp, the parent company of the Fox News Channel also owns 20th Century Fox movie studios, the FX Network, the "New York Post," "The Wall Street Journal," Harper Collins publishing and probably your local Fox affiliate among many others.
The charges against the company are criminal, and they could have dire implications not only for Murdoch and the people under him, but for the prime minister himself.
David Cameron's former communications director Andy Coulson is also a former editor for "News of the World," the Murdoch paper at the center of the scandal. Coulson has been arrested for his alleged role in all of this. So the question is, what did his former boss, David Cameron know and when did he know it?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAMERON: Let me say once more, if, if I was lied to, if the police were lied to, if the select committee was lied to, it would be a matter of deep regret and a matter of criminal prosecution.
(CROWD REACTING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Order. Anybody might think that orchestrated noise is taking place. Order! Order! The house will come to order, and these order and these exchanges will continue in an orderly way, Mr. Ed Milliband.
ED MILIBAND, LABOUR PARTY LEADER: Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has just made a very important admission. He has admitted that his chief of staff was given information before the general election that Andy Coulson had hired a man who had been jailed for seven years for a criminal conspiracy and who made payments to the police on behalf of the News of the World.
This evidence casts serious doubt on Mr. Coulson's assurances that the phone hacking over which he resigned was an isolated example of illegal activity.
CAMERON: You know what, Mr. Speaker, you know what, Mr. Speaker, I think the public and the victims of this appalling scandal want us to rise above this and deal with the problems that this country faces.
(CROWD REACTING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Milliband.
MILLIBAND: Mr. Speaker, he just doesn't get it. He just doesn't get it.
(CROWD REACTING)
CAMERON: I'm afraid, Mr. Speaker, the person who is not getting it is now the leader of the opposition.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: The unfolding firestorm was brought to life by Hollywood actor Hugh Grant, a Brit himself who secretly taped a former "News of the World" reporter talking about the unsavory practices that he says everyone in his organization condone and encourage.
Here's grant taking a very uneasy looking picture with that reporter Paul McMullan. I spoke with McMullen who said that hacking phones to get information illegally happened all the time at the paper.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAUL MCMULLAN, FORMER "NEWS OF THE WORLD" JOURNALIST (via telephone): Everybody knew. I mean, it started from the time way back in the '90s when you could actually buy a scanner in a shop and sit outside a star's house and actually tape-record their entire conversation. When that became illegal to buy a scanner, all you were left with was getting into the voicemail of the celebrity or politician, whoever was being targeted.
I mean, everybody knew -- I mean, it was commonplace. It wasn't just journalists. It was kids in the schoolyard who were doing it to their mate. I mean, it was just a very common trick. All you had to do was hit 9 and put in the pin code and people didn't even change their pin codes from 40.
So the problem is people got such good results early on. I mean, for one example, a very famous British, very chic blonde TV presenter, someone on a fishing expedition hacked her phone, listened to three messages, and the last one was the English manager saying, "Darling, we had such a good night last night."
But when you get that quality of information, instead of being the one-off every now and then, it started to be done routinely and not just to the Hugh Grants and Nicole Kidmans of the world but to our readers and, worse than that, to, you know, the mobile phone of the girl who was in fact (INAUDIBLE) had died. And that's where it really came to a head because private detectives who did that deleted some of the messages. So, it looked like her phone has come back to life from her parents.
LEMON: OK. So, listen, you talked about Milly Dowler and her family. This is what I want to know -- were people as high possibly as Rupert Murdoch complicit in any this? Would Rupert Murdoch know about these practices? Would people under him know about these sorts of practices?
MCMULLAN: Yes. Well, people under him certainly should have known. I mean, when Rebecca Brooks, who is his right-hand woman in Britain, were doing my job, she wad features editor, and I became deputy feature editor. So, we were looking at the same books. So, we both had.
And we were spending 4,000 pounds a week on private investigators doing these kind of practices. And it's just extraordinary, you know, if she was the department boss who then moved up to be editor, I mean, how could you not notice the spend of over 100 grand a year on this kind of thing and not even ask what it's for.
So, I mean, her position is ludicrous. And even worse than that, for her to turn around and initially, Andy Coulson, turned around and say we didn't know about it, it was a rogue reporter acting on his own. And now, five reporters have been arrested. I've been invited to Scotland Yard to be arrested three times. And they were still saying that we didn't know. It was just reporters acting on their own.
(END VIDEOTAPE) LEMON: Rupert Murdoch and his son, James Murdoch and Rebekah Brooks have agreed to testify Tuesday at a parliamentary committee hearing on the scandal. Make sure you stay tuned to CNN.
A government plan that actually worked? How do you shutdown one of the nation's busiest roadways and not cause much trouble? We're going to show you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL MAHER, HOST, "REAL TIMES WITH BILL MAHER": I thought everybody would be scared away from this because they're saying traffic all around the city because of this is going to be tied up all day and all night. They say people who have road rage bring extra ammunitions.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Yes, we were all led to believe that the roads in Los Angeles would be some kind of gridlock hell escape right about now all because of a ten-mile stretch of the 405, one of the busiest freeways in the country is shut down this weekend. But the so-called carmageddon really isn't all that bad right now. Crews are replacing part of the Mulholland Drive Bridge over the highway. The 405 is scheduled to reopen on Monday.
So it seems like the warnings worked. Drivers are staying off the roads in L.A., but some people didn't have a chance like the couple you're about to meet, as our Thelma Gutierrez tells us, carmageddon just happened to fall on the happiest day of their lives.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRIS VERSOZA, BRIDE: I'm Chris Versoza. I'm the bride. I'm about to get married in Santa Monica.
RUS PHANVONG, GROOM: I'm Rus, Chris' finance and I hope to make it to the church on time.
VERSOZA: We're getting married July 16th.
PHANVONG: Also known as carmageddon.
THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on-camera): You guys are asking your guests to come in to the city on the worst day ever.
PHANVONG: Yes.
GUTIERREZ (voice-over): To pull it off, everyone from the bride and groom in Los Angeles to the best man in Fresno, guests in Riverside, Camarillo and Huntington Beach, even the photographer in Venice were prepared to navigate what was being billed as the worst traffic jam in L.A. history, to, as the song says, get to the church on time. (SONG PLAYING)
Get me to the church, get me to the church, for Pete's sake get me to the church on time.
PHANVONG: Going, I'll say two miles per hour.
GUTIERREZ: We have two hours to get to Saint Monica Catholic Church in Santa Monica which incidentally is smack in the middle of the carmageddon freeway closure. They warn guests of the ten-mile long freeway closure on their Web site.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I got here three days early so I wouldn't be late for the wedding.
HEIDI RITTNER, WEDDING GUEST: Hello. I'm starting out my journey through carmaggedon, going to the wedding over in Santa Monica.
LIZ HUSTON, WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER: I've given myself 2-1/2 hours to get to where the bride is getting ready. A drive that normally takes 20 minutes.
GUTIERREZ: On the way to his own wedding, Rus posted traffic updates on Twitter from the city bus.
PHANVONG: The local streets are losing the battle. Freeway's clear.
GUTIERREZ: As the bride made her way to the church, a surprise.
(on-camera) How would you describe the traffic right now?
VERSOZA: You know what, I'm even more excited because it's looking like the roads are moving and I'm hearing 405 is green. Only a couple of cars on the road.
GUTIERREZ (voice-over): A couple of cars, a bus load of groomsmen and the bride's limo all at the church way, way early.
VERSOZA: I made it.
GUTIERREZ: Thelma Gutierrez, CNN, Santa Monica, California.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All the best to them.
All right, I want you to take a look at this. Nails as long as 26 inches? We'll talk to the woman behind them known as Mama Jazz, and she'll show you how she functions with them. That's ahead.
Plus, we go in-depth on a controversial police arrest in Rochester, new York. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EMILY GOOD, COMMUNITY ORGANIZER: What in the world? I'm sorry I was standing my front yard, concerned about what was going on in my neighborhood, and you're arresting me. What the hell is going on right now?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Tonight, we go in depth about a story behind this video.
When Rochester police put the cuffs on Emily Good, they also set off a national debate -- monitoring police versus public safety.
Good -- a Rochester, New York woman -- was arrested for obstructing governmental administration after she recorded police making a traffic stop. Her charges were later dropped, but police say citizens now feel bolder to intervene which puts everyone at risk.
CNN's Susan Candiotti is on the story for us.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Emily Good was unwinding at home in her pajamas late one night in May when she and a friend noticed police stop a car in front of her house. As the police were questioning the car's occupants, the 28-year-old community organizer was questioning why. So, she hit the record button on her iPod.
GOOD: I wanted to see what they were doing to this young man.
MARIO MASIC, POLICE OFFICER: You guys need something?
GOOD: I'm just -- this is my front yard, I'm just recording what you're doing. It's my right.
MASIC: Actually, not from the sidewalk.
GOOD: This is my yard.
CANDIOTTI: Good is speaking with Rochester Police Officer Mario Masic.
MASIC: I don't feel safe with you standing behind me. So, I'm going to ask you to go to your house.
GOOD: When I started filming, I had my feet just barely on the sidewalk like this. He told me you can't watch from the sidewalk. So, I stepped back just one step so I was entirely on the lawn. He said, "You're not even backing up." And I said, "Would you like me to take a step back? You know, I will take a step back." And I -- I stepped back further.
MASIC: OK, listen, I'm not going to explain myself. What you're going to do is you're going to end up going to jail. I'm trying to give you a warning. OK?
GOOD: I'm going to back up.
MASIC: You know what? You're going to go jail. This is not right. No, stay right here.
GOOD: I'm sorry.
CANDIOTTI: She dropped the iPod. Her friend picked it up and kept rolling.
GOOD: I'm not deserving what they're doing and they're arresting me. I don't understand what's going on. I did nothing. I did nothing.
What in the world? I'm sorry. I was standing in my front yard. I'm concerned about what was going on in my neighborhood.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): She was charged with obstruction of governmental administration, a misdemeanor. Police Officer Masic is not allowed to speak publicly about the case, but the head of his union, Mike Mazzeo, says the issue is not that Emily Good was shooting video.
MIKE MAZZEO, PRESIDENT, ROCHESTER POLICE UNION: The issue here is the officer's attention was distracted from a very, potentially very dangerous situation. All she had to do was comply, go up on her porch, go on her home her own safety.
CANDIOTTI: Rochester Police Chief James Sheppard says safety is a key issue, but admits citizens have a right to shoot video in a public place.
CHIEF JAMES SHEPPARD, ROCHESTER, N.Y. POLICE: I don't think it was a -- a filming issue. I think if that were the issue, the film would have been confiscated. And I don't think that's the case.
CANDIOTTI: Emily Good sees her arrest as an attempt to intimidate residents.
GOOD: Even though the police insist that the filming isn't what got me arrested, it doesn't make sense that, you know, my taller male friend was never given any orders, was never even spoken to, and he was, you know, much -- much more I guess menacing-looking. He was fully dressed. I was in pajamas, you know?
It seems to me like the camera was the variable.
(APPLAUSE)
CANDIOTTI: The Rochester prosecutor's office later dropped the charge against Emily Good.
However, questions involving the Rochester police and video recording are still very much in play. On the same night Emily Good was cleared, a supporter of hers, Rochester resident Warren Barnes, recorded police officers stopping several men in his neighborhood.
WARREN BARNES, ROCHESTER RESIDENT: What are you being detained for?
CANDIOTTI: You can hear Barnes speaking out to the young men being questioned.
BARNES: What are you guys being detained for? What are they being detained for, officer?
CANDIOTTI: The men were released, and Barnes approached the police officers.
BARNES: Can I have your lieutenant's name? Can I have your lieutenant's name, sir? Can I have your business card so I know who interacted with you?
CANDIOTTI: Barnes says he did not record what happened next.
BARNES: I walked across the street like this gentleman's about to do. They sped across the street and said, "Jaywalking, jaywalking, we got you on camera jaywalking."
CANDIOTTI: Barnes was ticketed for not using a crosswalk. Later changed to disorderly conduct and obstructing traffic. Other charges followed, including weapons possession, what Barnes said was a utility knife, and marijuana possession.
Barnes pleaded not guilty to the charges, but says the jaywalking ticket was a way of punishing him for making the recording.
Police Chief James Sheppard says jaywalking is a violation of traffic law and led to other charges.
SHEPPARD: There were a number of other issues involved in that case. One was possession of a weapon. There was also contraband that was seized by the police department that also resulted in that arrest.
CANDIOTTI: On YouTube, video shows another incident that community activists call purely retaliatory.
While Emily Good's supporters were inside a meeting, police took out rulers and issued parking tickets to any car more than 12 inches from the curb. Rochester Police Chief James Sheppard says, in each of the cases, his officers were enforcing the law.
SHEPPARD: However, in the spirit of the law, maybe they take it a little bit too far. That's yet to be determined. We'll look at it in terms of our internal investigation.
CANDIOTTI: Rochester Mayor Thomas Richards is waiting for the results for all the internal investigations. MAYOR THOMAS RICHARDS, ROCHESTER, NEW YORK: We're going to look at whether there's a pattern of arrests here. Whether there's a pattern of arrests here that would indicate that this kind of arrest is being somehow abused.
CANDIOTTI: Emily Good says she's been arrested several times over the last couple of years for civil disobedience, most recently at a local protest against foreclosure. And she's convinced that the law is on her side in terms of recording police activity. Good and her supporters vow to keep cameras rolling.
GOOD: It has a powerful role in, you know, telling the officers that not only are we watching this, but, you know, potentially the whole world is watching this.
CANDIOTTI: Susan Candiotti, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: And up next, we'll hear from a man who says he was harassed by Rochester police. He's also a city firefighter and a county legislator.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Continuing now, our in-depth coverage of the Rochester police incident. I spoke with Rochester firefighter and Monroe County legislator Willie Lightfoot. He was arrested in May for police encounter caught on his surveillance cameras. He says he was intervening because an officer was making a threat. Officers charged him with multiple offenses and he eventually pled guilty to DUI. He says there was good reason to cut a deal.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILLIE LIGHTFOOT, MONROE COUNTY, N.Y. LEGISLATOR: I took the plea because I couldn't afford to go to trial like many people in my community. And also because of my job, if I was convicted of obstruction of government administration, I would have been terminated from my employment.
LEMON: OK. So we reached out to Rochester police about your situation, and they didn't want to make any further comments. But earlier, Chief Sheppard told our affiliate WHEM-TV that he encouraged you to continue the complaint process, Mr. Lightfoot. But you dropped your complaint against the police. Why did you do it?
LIGHTFOOT: Well, sir, when I went to make my complaint about three or four days after the incident happened, I was sitting giving my complaint. The person that I was giving my complaint to was in constant defense of the individual officers.
LEMON: Since this controversy with you, since it began, police behavior has gotten better because people are watching officers more closely, or has it gotten worse because officers are angry now? Which one is it? LIGHTFOOT: Don, I'm getting numerous calls from people, constituents in my community, and people in the neighborhood, especially adjacent to that I represent. And many people are saying that they're constantly being harassed.
And when I say about harassed, I mean, I believe that the way the police department treats African-Americans especially in this community as opposed to Caucasians is a different approach. They're much more aggressive than they are when they're approaching a Caucasian resident as opposed to an African-American resident. And so, I'm hearing nothing but complaints from people in the city.
LEMON: OK. So, Mr. Lightfoot, that was the reason that Emily Good said she recorded that video in her front yard, because she was concerned about racial profiling and police harassment.
Do you believe that this is a systematic problem with Rochester police?
LIGHTFOOT: Absolutely. I believe that. I was a victim of that myself.
I was driven around for four hours. When asked to go to the bathroom, I was told to urinate on myself. I was never told why I was arrested.
I was treated like a common criminal and thug. And basically, I've been nothing but an upstanding citizen in this community. I'm a two-time war veteran. You know, I'm an upstanding citizen, business owner.
And I came to the aid of a young man who was in handcuffs who was being threatened. And I thought that that was wrong.
LEMON: OK. How do you -- you heard the police chief say you can't be intervening in police work. If an officer asks you to do something, you should abide by that, especially if the officer doesn't feel safe.
Does that explanation -- is that enough for you and for the citizens of Rochester?
LIGHTFOOT: Well, I think that you have to definitely uphold the law, and we have to let them do their job. Quite naturally, if you look at my video, it was said -- before my video came out, that I was acting belligerent and interfering. But when you see my video, you see me actually assisting the officer, trying to help him find the individual he was looking for.
So, in my opinion, you know, we have to get to a point of who oversees the overseer. We have to really ask ourselves this question. And, no, I don't think it's enough because they're sworn in to uphold the law.
And if they're sworn in to uphold the law and tell the truth, then they have to be accountable, as well. (END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Our thanks to Willie Lightfoot. We did ask for Rochester's police chief and mayor to join us tonight, but they declined.
Everyone's looking for ways to help the economy. Next, we'll talk to a man who has an idea how to get more money to communities that need it. You'll hear his plan, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: In tonight's "What Matters," our partnership with "Essence" magazine, a national movement is under way to help some of those hit hardest in these depressed times. Minority groups. It's called the People's Economic Movement.
And radio talk show host Warren Ballentine joins me now by phone.
So, Warren, what's going on? You were behind this. People save money so banks can loan more money out?
WARREN BALLENTINE, HOST, "WARREN BALLENTINE SHOW" (via- telephone): Well, Don, thanks to the National Bankers Association, they have agreed to match dollar for dollar what we put in the bank. In the spirit of Dr. King with the memorial coming up. And what they're going to do is literally lend this money out to people all across the country to try to create job creation, home ownership, education and the great thing about it is, they're not asking anybody to give money, they're just asking them to open up a bank account, Don.
LEMON: OK. Now there has been money already that has transferred. How much are we talking about? Can you give us a breakdown on how much has been matched, as well.
BALLENTINE: Well, what's happened already is I did a national campaign with Mechanics & Farmers Bank out of North Carolina for one year. We put over $1 million in that bank. They matched that $1 million, and they're doing great things in the state of North Carolina. That's how this movement came into be with all of the association of -- which is the National Bankers Association across the country and literally, you know, we're asking every bank in the country to be a part of this. We're asking churches, celebrities, and the community to step up and say look, we keep looking for somebody to save us, let's save ourselves.
LEMON: Well, this is about, this is about creating wealth you said in minority communities that hit hardest really by unemployment. And I understand as well that you have approval from the White House. Is that exactly what you're trying to do, build wealth here?
BALLENTINE: Well, I'm trying to give opportunity here, Don. I'm trying to set up a platform here along with the National Bankers Association to give people an opportunity to have a chance to create job creation in this country because that's what we desperately need right now.
I mean, look, unemployment is at 9.2 percent. 16 percent in African-American community, 40 percent for teenagers in this country. And right now, you know, (INAUDIBLE), Don, we may have come here in different ships, but right now we're in the same boat. We have to create jobs in this country. We talk about racism in this country, but classism is what we need to be talking about because poverty does not see color.
LEMON: All right. And, again, you have the approval of the White House?
BALLENTINE: The White House did say that they liked what we were doing, and that they would support it wholeheartedly.
LEMON: How can people participate? Where can they find information?
BALLENTINE: They can go to the NationalBankers.com
LEMON: .Org.
BALLENTINE: .Org, excuse me -- NationalBankers.org. Also, you know, I'll be talking about it on my radio show. You can got to my Web site, TheTruthFighters.com, and hopefully, we'll have more interaction with you as we lead up into the August date.
And again, we're asking everybody to participate because we're not asking you to give money, we're just asking you to open an account so the banks can match that money and really get the economy going. And these banks weren't part of the bailout. They weren't part of the toxic loans that took place. These are responsible banks in our community.
LEMON: NationalBankers.org or TheTruthFighters.com for more information. Trying to create wealth.
Warren Ballentine, thank you, sir.
BALLENTINE: Thank you, Don.
LEMON: All right.
You know, it's something all of us do, cut our nails. OK, maybe not all of us. You're going to meet a lady with 26-inch finger nails.
But first, hit hard by the recession, this week's CNN Hero turned to her backyard to put food on her family's dinner table. Seeing that other families were also struggling, Holly Hirshberg decided that she needed to help them, too.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HOLLY HIRSHBERG, COMMUNITY CRUSADER: I love the United States. I think it's a wonderful place to live. It's scary to me that with so much land and so much abundance that people are hungry. In 2008, my husband lost his job. It was a very, very difficult time, and the first thing we did was plant a garden.
If you grow your own food, you never have to worry about how you're going to feed your family. We thought if we can help others garden, then we can help them pull themselves up out of poverty.
I'm Holly Hirschberg, and we fight hunger in the United States by giving away seeds and teaching people to grow their own food.
We pack enough seeds to grow food for a family of four. We want to help people provide for themselves.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is an eggplant, and I've already harvested from it. My garden is in front of my apartment. I can grow tomatoes, bell pepper in just a flower pot.
If it wasn't for my garden, then I wouldn't be able to afford fresh produce at all.
HIRSHBERG: Here we have a tomatillo plant. These were all from seeds from the dinner garden. We have provided over 65,000 seed packs to individuals and families all over the country. We also have provided seeds for over 180 community gardens.
So who wants to grow vegetables?
We see a lot of families whose children only eat when they get a free meal at school. When they are at home, we really want them to have the best nutrition possible, and certainly you can't do better than garden veggies. I'm not a master gardener. I wouldn't even say I'm a good gardener. I am an enthusiastic gardener.
The seeds do all the work. We provide the seeds. We help you grow them. You eat the food to fight hunger.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: OK, everybody. Welcome back. I want to introduce you now to Jazz Sinkfield, an Atlanta woman who's been growing her nails for over 22 years. Now the longest, which is 26 inches long. You heard me. 26 inches long. Which one is that one?
JAZZ ISON SINKFIELD, NAIL LADY: This one.
LEMON: That one. This one. OK, I don't want to get close because I don't want to break them. If I break them, I'm in major trouble.
SINKFIELD: That's right.
LEMON: All right, Jazz. They call you Mama Jazz.
SINKFIELD: Right. LEMON: OK.
SINKFIELD: OK.
LEMON: All right, so first, before I ask you how you do stuff because you answered a lot.
SINKFIELD: OK.
LEMON: Big question is why.
SINKFIELD: Well, I always have been able to grow my nails. My father is a pastor. And I couldn't grow them when I was smaller because he told me that I had to find my identity, and once I found my identity, I started growing my nails.
LEMON: OK. So you've been growing them now for 22 years. When they break, are you like oh, no?
SINKFIELD: Yes.
LEMON: How often do they break?
SINKFIELD: Not too often. But if I break them, I go back to my nail tech and she puts acrylic back on them where it broke and mend them back together.
LEMON: So they never break at the base.
SINKFIELD: No.
LEMON: Never.
SINKFIELD: Never.
LEMON: Do you have to protect them with something?
SINKFIELD: I have acrylic, yes.
LEMON: OK. All right. So someone asked me on here, they said, do you have, from your nails, they said do you have any joint problems because are they heavy?
SINKFIELD: No, they're not heavy.
LEMON: Oh my God. I got to tell you, that is weird. You have to admit it's weird when people see you. Do they have a reaction? Do you frighten children ever?
SINKFIELD: No, children are my biggest love ones to my nails actually.
LEMON: OK. All right, someone says how do you wash your hair?
SINKFIELD: I have a utensil, hair utensil that I just take and wash my hair with. LEMON: OK. And this is from Twitter. MystiqueLady63 says, "OK, how does she sleep and how does she scratch the inside of her ear?"
SINKFIELD: OK.
LEMON: Did you see that?
SINKFIELD: No problem.
LEMON: It goes right in there. It's no problem.
SINKFIELD: Just go right in there.
LEMON: Do you know -- are there other people who -- are you the nail champion?
SINKFIELD: I'm not aware that I am, no.
LEMON: You're not aware.
SINKFIELD: No.
LEMON: I remember from years ago, there was a fingernail champion. This is the woman who was a secretary and her nails were that long.
SINKFIELD: OK.
LEMON: What do you do for a living? Are you a housewife? Or a housekeeper? Whatever. Housewife?
SINKFIELD: Yes.
LEMON: A homemaker?
SINKFIELD: Yes, that's OK.
LEMON: Yes? And your kids?
SINKFIELD: Five kids.
LEMON: They're all over there taking pictures and whatever, and they're cool with it.
SINKFIELD: They're cool with it.
Do you ever go -- OK, I have to go, but do you ever go, OK, enough already? I just want to -- because you have to protect these all the time. Do you ever get tired of it?
SINKFIELD: No, I don't.
LEMON: Never.
SINKFIELD: Because they are just like my family. We have a bond. LEMON: All right. Would you get mad if I break one and kept it for a souvenir? I'm kidding.
SINKFIELD: This is priceless.
LEMON: Mama Jazz, thank you very much.
All right. Next we're going to let you in on a little secret. It's a secret dinner party I was invited to. None of us knew who was going to be there or why. And we'll tell you what it's all about, coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right. If you follow me on Twitter, you know I am a big foodie. I often tweet pictures of my meals and you guys tweet right back with yours. Well, the folks at CNN.com's food blog called Eattocracy took notice and this week invited me to an exclusive dinner in Harlem at the famous Red Rooster Restaurant owned by award-winning chief Marcus Samuelson. It's called the Eatocracy Secret Supper with people from all walks of life discussing issues over a gourmet dinner.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KAT KINSMAN, MANAGING EDITOR, EATOCRACY: With this particular dinner we thought we're better than New York City to talk about food's role in cultural identity. So we've invited a bunch of people here tonight who have absolutely no idea who's going to be here. They didn't know until today where it was going to be happening. They just saw CNN Eatocracy, they've said yes, saved the date and we're going to get a drink in their hand and get them talking.
LEMON: I'm about to burst to have all of this great food that comes from everywhere, but to be having it here at this restaurant just means so much to me. I mean, this is amazing.
EDDIE HUANG, CHEF/AUTHOR: I just saw a few name cards when I got here like five minutes ago. But you guys are pretty good about keeping secrets.
KINSMAN: Nobody's here by accident. They don't know why we picked them, but everybody has an interesting story to tell.
Little card in front of you. I identified myself as and I've been thinking what to put on there, and I'm thinking what I'm going to write down on mine is recovering Catholic school ex-suburban white girl mutt. I hope everybody here at this table is going to share your story of who you think you are, who you want to be, what you ate, what you thought you were going to be, and how food played into all of this.
HUANG: Growing up in America, you know, I mean, food for me was probably the easiest thing to understand about like Chinese culture, growing up, things like that.
TREN'NESS WOODS-BLACK, SPOKESPERSON, SYLVIAN RESTAURANT: My cultural identity is grits. It's an acronym for girl raised in the south but I'm grits Harlem style.
I eat everything. I eat chitlin's. I love beans all the time, and I'm looking at the table and I'm like boiled peanuts. If you're from the south and you know that at the church, everyone has a boiled peanut on plate. It's like a delicacy.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: So my story was, I'm a mysterious American gumbo of love.
I'm Don Lemon at the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta. Good night. Thanks for watching.
