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Amy Winehouse Dead at 27; Massacre in Norway; Debt Ceiling Talks
Aired July 23, 2011 - 22:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: A well-known singer silenced. Amy Winehouse known by many for her drug and alcohol abuse, then her music, found dead in her London home. Tonight reaction from Hollywood, plus a long list of singers who have died at the young age of 27.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was terrible. I can't understand really what happened.
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LEMON: Massacre in Norway. A home-grown terrorist kills nearly 100 people. Most of them children gathered at a youth camp. Tonight, the suspect is talking to police.
A little girl with a heart of gold instead of asking for birthday presents, she asked that people help children half a world away. Tonight her life comes to a tragic end, but her legacy lives on.
Good evening, everyone. I'm Don Lemon, live in the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta. We welcome our viewers tonight who are watching around the world. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.
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CROWD SCREAMING
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LEMON: TMZ says this is the last time Amy Winehouse was on stage, three days ago in north London. She supported her 13-year-old goddaughter, an aspiring singer herself. Tonight, the world is mourning the singer blessed with a voice beyond her years, but cursed with addictions that may have cut them short. London police say they do not know what killed the Grammy Award winning singer. They found her today in her apartment. But many are speculating her death is connected to her substance abuse. Well, "Showbiz Tonight's" Kareen Wynter joins us now from Los Angeles.
Kareen, good evening to you.
Winehouse's father is now returning to London.
KAREEN WYNTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Over this tragic news, we just learned that her dad, Mitch Winehouse, he got word of his daughter's death. Listen to this, Don. After he got word, he was in New York, he hopped on a plane back to the UK.
It turns out Mitch Winehouse, the aspiring jazz singer was in New York At the time rehearsing Friday with his band getting ready for his big debut here in the states. So he cancelled his upcoming show on Monday, he flew home with his manager who also managed his daughter.
Imagine that, Mitch, a former cab driver turned singer flying home tonight to be closer to his daughter, Don.
LEMON: Celebrities have been mourning since the news broke, Kareen. What have you been hearing?
WYNTER: Well, many stars, are of course sad that she died so young. But I have to say, Don, they're not totally surprised by Winehouse's death, you know, with all her struggles with drugs and alcohol.
Listen to what a few had to say.
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VAL KILMER, ACTOR: The thing about addiction that I learned from playing a bunch of these guys that are addicts is that it's not wrong or bad to want to get out of the pain of mortality. That's what we're trying to do. And a lot of artists are just too sensitive for the world.
KELLAN LUTZ, ACTOR: Yes, I just heard about Amy passing away today. I'm a big fan of her music. And I don't know her personally, but it's always tragic when someone goes.
It's just sad. I mean, she's very well gifted and very talented.
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WYNTER: Those were actors Kellan Lutz, as well as Val Kilmer. Kilmer, Don, interestingly played singer Jim Morrison in the 1991 film "The Doors." Remember that film?
Morrison like Winehouse also died at the age of 27, but the big mystery, Don, in all of this right now is that police don't know how the singer died, if it had anything at all to do with drugs, perhaps alcohol and they say they won't put that piece of the puzzle together until they perform that autopsy which could come as early as tomorrow, Don.
LEMON: Kareen, do we know what led police to her body?
WYNTER: Well, you know, the circumstances, Don, are still quite bizarre. Paramedics found the singer's body today in her London apartment. We've all seen the eerie video of paramedics removing her covered body, taken out on a stretcher, placed in a private ambulance.
London police say they got a call to head to a home which matched Winehouse's address Saturday afternoon in response to a woman found deceased. She was pronounced dead on the scene.
And Don, today, an incredible scene outside the singer's home. Hundreds of people from fans paying respects, to police really trying to contain that area. Many fans are just shocked over this talented singer's short life. An international star who won a handful of Grammy's back in 2008 with that unforgettable album "Back to Black." But her personal demons, they often overshadowed her talent.
She was booed off at Belgrade stage during a stumbling performance last month. She did another short stint in rehab after that painful performance, Don, where she checked in and checked right back out of rehab. It really was a story of the latter part of her life.
A star with so much promise, who had to battle personal demons in the public eye. Don, one thing, I want to add here, something our producer Denise Kwan found out right before our hit. Interestingly enough, her 2007 worldwide breakthrough album "Back to Black," it's number one right now on Amazon.com as well as iTunes. So you can just imagine all the amazing things that this troubled singer could have done in life if things hadn't ended so tragically.
LEMON: Kareen Wynter in Hollywood. Thank you, Kareen.
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AMY WINEHOUSE, SINGER: My management at the time kind of stepped in and thought they were being the good guys by stepping in and strong -- arming me into a rehabilitation center. But I just didn't really need it.
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LEMON: That was Amy Winehouse in 2007. Just two months ago, the singer's staff issued a statement saying they were doing everything they could to, quote, "Return her to her best," after she cut short her European tour.
Celebrity addicts often don't give themselves enough time to recover. That's according to Dr. Drew who is from our sister network, HLN.
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DR. DREW PINSKY, HOST, "DR. DREW": When an opiate addict goes into treatment, opiate addiction takes months to years to treat. And one of the most serious risks in my experience to that recovery for celebrities and particularly musicians, is they return to their career, they return to the road far to prematurely and it's absolutely predictable what will happen.
The fact is, you know, funny thing, people look at these stories and go oh, addiction treatment doesn't work. The crazy thing about addiction is part of the disease is a disturbance of thinking, where the addict themselves convinces themselves they don't need to listen to or do what they're being told to do. And if they simply do the recovery process on a daily basis, just simply do it, they will be fine just the way a diabetic is fine if they take their insulin three times a day.
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LEMON: Again, police say Winehouse' cause of death is, quote, "unexplained."
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EDWARD FORNES, SURVIVOR OF NORWAY RAMPAGE: I ran around for five minutes, then I started swimming.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Was he shooting at you in the ocean?
FORNES: Yes, and he missed it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Were people around you hit?
FORNES: Yes.
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LEMON: That young man escaped with his life, but so many others did not. Two attacks in Norway. At least 92 people dead, 85 of them at a youth camp and seven in the bombing in the capital Oslo. So far one man arrested and charged in both attacks. That man identified by local media as Anders Behring Breivik, 32 years old, described as a right winger, a Christian fundamentalist, but police now say they haven't ruled out the possibility that others were involved.
A man who identified himself as Breivik's attorney spoke to Norwegian Broadcaster TV 2. He says, "Breivik believes the terrorist attacks were horrible but, quote, "In his head, they were necessary."
That attorney also promises Breivik will explain himself at a hearing on Monday.
The accounts from the youth camp and Utoya are chilling. Witnesses say a man showed up in a police uniform reportedly he asked the campers to gather around and started firing with a machine pistol. Because the camp is run by Norway's ruling Labor Party, investigators believe this attack could have been politically motivated.
The camp attack followed a car bombing outside a government building not far away in Oslo. A witness says she saw Breivik buy six tons of fertilizer in May. That material may be used to make bombs.
For Norway's prime minister, this was more than an assault against his country as CNN Jim Boulden reports, he has a very personal connection to this tragedy.
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JIM BOULDEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: In an early morning press conference, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg said he feared he would know some of the young people killed on the island he visited every year since 1974.
JENS STOLTENBERG, NORWEGIAN PRIME MINISTER (through translator): It is especially heavy when it is people I know. And I know quite a few of those who lost their lives. I know their parents or several others who lost their lives. And this happened in a place where I became politically active and I said earlier today that it was a paradise for youngsters, and yesterday, it turned into hell.
BOULDEN: The prime minister called a meeting of his cabinet Saturday. There were a number of government buildings badly damaged Friday. The prime minister called on all Norwegians to do what they can: to aid those affected by the biggest one day of killing in the country since the Second World War.
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LEMON: Well, for some of the victims, it was over before they knew what was happening. Others were hunted. The gunman taking his time, stalking them down and the survivors as Diana Magnay reports are still fighting through their shock.
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DIANA MAGNAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Young survivors sob in each other's arms. The prime minister tries to console the inconsolable. As police and the Red Cross continued their search for the dead, those who survived tell of the horror they witnessed. The killing spree where a lone gunman was able to fire for 19 minutes unchecked.
OTTAR FAGERHEIM, SURVIVOR: He seemed calm and he seemed like he was just taking photos when he was shooting people.
MAGNAY: What was he wearing? What was he wearing?
FORNES: He was wearing fake police uniform. It looked like a saloon rifle.
MAGNAY: And his expression, it was blank?
FORNES: Completely blank.
MAGNAY: But he was shouting?
FORNES: Yes, come back. MAGNAY: Come back to those swimming for their lives as he fired in their wake. Many were hit. Boats now troll the water for their bodies. For others the water was the only place to hide.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I started swimming onto the shores, and then got halfway and then I got cramps because I have been laying so long in the water so I got some of the locals saved my life with.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So you can hide in the water?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, because it's the only place to hide. All the other places were full of people.
MAGNAY: Hundreds of young people had gathered here for a political summer camp, a tradition of the ruling Labor Party which the prime minister attended in his youth.
STOLTENBERG (through translator): What was my youth paradise has been turned into a hell for all of the people that were involved yesterday. It has made a major impression in the meetings, to meet the people that survived and the people that got ashore.
MAGNAY: Young people determined not to let this nightmare break them.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's important that we stay together and keep strong. We can't let a coward like that stop us. Because going on to an island with only youth and killing them, and they have no way to escape, that's a cowardness act.
MAGNAY: Diana Magnay, CNN near Utoya Island, Norway.
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LEMON: They're running out of time to raise the debt ceiling. A late Saturday meeting was held without the president. Was any progress made on the debt ceiling negotiations?
And this guy has got the right idea, but when will the rest of us get to cool off from the extreme heat going on across the nation? A live weather forecast is straight ahead.
Many of you are asking for information through social media. You can reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, CNN.com/Don, and on FourSquare.
My book "Transparent," about my life and journeys as journalist, available at Barnes & Noble and anywhere books are sold.
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LEMON: Live pictures now of the White House and the Capitol here in the United States. Congressional leaders held talks today at both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue. But after a trip to the White House and then back to the Capitol, all they can agree on at this hour is that they need a deal on the debt ceiling and they need it soon. Our congressional correspondent Kate Bolduan has more from Capitol Hill.
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KATE BOLDUAN, CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Following that dramatic breakdown of negotiations to raise the debt ceiling between President Obama and House Speaker John Boehner, congressional leaders met here on Capitol Hill late Saturday evening to try to broker a deal.
The house speaker John Boehner is proposing a $3 to $4 trillion package of cuts that would raise the debt ceiling in a two-part process, this according to Democratic and Republican sources. But that two-part process we're told by a Democratic congressional aide was seen as a big impasse as Democratic leaders in the room in this meeting rejected that idea as Democratic leaders and President Obama, quite frankly, oppose the idea of any short-term extension. So the negotiations continue.
No agreement yet has been reached. But we're told one point of agreement of congressional leaders in the room was that they wanted to reach an agreement amongst themselves before Asian markets opened Sunday.
Kate Bolduan, CNN, Capitol Hill.
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LEMON: All right, Kate.
For the latest on the negotiations, watch "STATE OF THE UNION" tomorrow. Candy Crowley's guest will be the Treasury secretary Timothy Geithner who has been at the center of the talks from the beginning. That's 9:00 a.m. Eastern on Sunday right here on CNN.
You know, the heat just won't let up. Is there any relief in sight? I want you to check these kids out. They found a way to stay cool today. And our Jacqui Jeras has a forecast in just two minutes.
Also after a break, a very sad story. A little girl with a heart of gold unselfishly helping so many others a world away. We'll tell you how she ends up.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: For her birthday, she didn't want any presents. She told us not to buy any presents. She wanted everyone to give money so that children and parents could have water.
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LEMON: Oh, man. Now, cars nearly submerged on flooded roads. Look at that. Their drivers waist deep in high water and needing rescue.
This is what it looked like in Chicago today after record rains, nearly seven inches fell in the early morning hours, making this Chicago's wettest day ever. Many flights were also delayed at busy O'Hare International Airport.
And our meteorologist Jacqui Jeras is here to tell us what's going on with all the rain and all the heat around the country.
JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Did you see that? They used snow plows at O'Hare to get all the water off the runway.
LEMON: The water off the runway.
JERAS: Yes. I mean, seven inches in a couple hours that is amazing. So they went from record heat to record rain. And, you know, that's really the extremes that you need unfortunately to get rid of some of that heat. So we've got showers and thundershowers across the upper Midwest and pushing into the northeast.
And this is where that boundary is. Where that cold air is trying to advance, trying to give us a little bit of a breather here. But some of those thunderstorms are severe. So those yellow watch boxes that you can see are in effect for another couple hours tonight. In the meantime, we're waiting on that rain and that relief in the northeast.
Check out the heat index right now in Philadelphia. 99 degrees. That's the temperature your body feels. It's 10:00 at night. Oh, my gosh, 99 degrees. So that is just brutal. It feels like 98 in Washington, D.C. And you can see the heat index up there in the upper 90s across much of the nation's midsection, as well.
The upper Midwest, you got your break. Chicago 88. It's not great but it's better. 75 in Minneapolis. Much better. That heat dome remains in place but it's starting to shift now, and this is basically a huge area of high pressure that's stacked up way into the atmosphere. And it really takes a lot to get something to shift a long-term pattern like this. So we're finally getting this pushing down by tomorrow. So Chicago is better. Detroit is better. New York City is better as well as Boston. Unfortunately, D.C. and everybody down to the south of there, not going to get that break.
We're continuing to set records. We had a number of them today. Dallas-Fort Worth today was day 22 in a row with triple digit temperatures. Couple of pop-up thunderstorms, that's all that you're going to get, really, for some of these breaks. And here are some of those records today. Atlantic City, New Jersey, 105, 103 in North Folk to Virginia, Baltimore, 102, 101 in Philly and Central Park hit a record, 100 degrees or more two days in a row. There are like two dozen record highs today. I can't get them all in there. So just a couple of the highlights.
LEMON: Try to stay cool. Hydrate. Hydrate. Hydrate.
Thank you, Jacqui. We really appreciate it.
You know, it was the deadliest day in Norway since World War II, but survivors say they aren't intimidated.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't want to be silenced. We're going to continue. We're going to continue to struggle and we're going to continue doing what we do. We want to make -- you know, we want to make the world a better place and we want to continue with our politics. We want to show them that they're not going to shoot us to silence.
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LEMON: Next, we'll have the latest on the investigation into the horrific terror attacks in Norway.
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LEMON: We want to check your headlines right now.
One man is in custody for a pair of deadly terrorist attacks in Norway. But police aren't ruling out the possibility that others are involved.
Local media are identifying this man as the only suspect in custody now. His name is Anders Behring Breivik, described as a right-wing Christian Fundamentalist. 85 people died when a gunman opened fire on a youth camp run by the ruling Labor Party. Before that, seven others died in a bombing in Oslo.
We're tracking developments tonight from Washington on the debt ceiling talks. Congressional leaders from both parties held a late afternoon meeting trying to forge some sort of deal. They also met for less than an hour this morning at the White House with President Obama. No deal yet, but they have agreed to try to reach a compromise in the next 24 hours or so to avoid disruptions to the financial markets.
Retired Army General John Shalikashvili has died of complications from a stroke. Born in Poland, Shalikashvili was the first foreign born chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He came to the U.S. as a teenager and reportedly learned English from watching John Wayne movies. President Obama today called him a genuine soldier, statesman who extraordinary -- whose extraordinary life represented the promise of America. The general was 75 years old.
Shocking video out of Syria. Soldiers and security forces some in plain clothes storming a mosque in the City of Aleppo. They beat people with sticks, dragging some of them away. Significantly, they entered the mosque with their shoes on which is considered extremely offensive in Islam. CNN cannot confirm the authenticity of this video, but Syria has been racked by anti-government protests and fierce reprisals by President Bashar al-Assad's regime. A cross made of steel beams from New York's fallen World Trade Center is now at its permanent new home. It was moved from a church in lower Manhattan to the nearby site where the national September 11th Memorial and Museum will stand. A construction worker discovered the perfectly formed cross standing upright in the rubble of Ground Zero. It was blessed by a priest before it was moved.
Gunfire rang out at a car show in Kent, Washington today. At least seven people were injured and rushed to hospitals. But their injuries are described as non-life threatening. One man was hurt but declined treatment. Police say the shooting may have been gang related. Witnesses say it appears to have started with a fight and escalated to gunfire.
CNN founder Ted Turner is being honored for his commitment to philanthropy. He received the Service Legacy Award here in Atlanta today from singer Usher's New Look Foundation which mentors young people. Turner has devoted himself to environmental conservation, youth empowerment and other causes.
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TED TURNER, SERVICE LEGACY AWARD RECIPIENT: I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for this wonderful, wonderful honor. And I believe service is extremely important and giving back is important. And I try and do it in my daily life. And to be recognized by this wonderful organization means a lot to me.
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LEMON: Former President Bill Clinton received the Service Legacy Award last year. Usher started his New Look Foundation 12 years ago. 500 young people from around the world came to Atlanta this week to attend the global conference and awards event.
Amy Winehouse found dead today in her home in London.
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LEMON: She fought drug and alcohol addiction. What legacy does she leave behind? We'll tell you.
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LEMON: Amy Winehouse in what turned out to be one of her last public performances, stumbling, slurring. This was supposed to be the start of her big European comeback tour in Serbia. Instead she cancelled all the shows after that.
Now we're left with that as a final image of a great, but profoundly troubled talent. Earlier, I spoke with Maureen O'Conner, a staff writer for Gawker.com, a site that has followed Winehouse's ups and downs for years now.
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MAUREEN O'CONNOR, STAFF WRITER, GAWKER.COM: Amy had been hospitalized many times for both drug overdoses and for other -- for falling down, for fainting, for things that signaled that even in her 20s she was very medically compromised. She had two - at least two confirmed stints in rehab. Multiple times she said that she was in forms of addiction treatment. Ever since after "Back to Black," her last album in 2006, she pretty much couldn't really hold a job. She had to cancel concerts all the time. She was supposed to be working on music and albums, and it never quite happened.
And for anyone that's known an addict, it felt very almost uncomfortably familiar. This person who is talented and good at things, and yet she just couldn't hold it together. She was arrested five times over the course of the last five years of her life for drug-related charges, for getting into fights and assaults, and it's really sort of the portrait of somebody who bounces back and forth between rehab, between police stations, between toxic relationships in the last few years of her life.
LEMON: And we're showing this video from "The Sun," which supposedly shows her smoking and heating up a pipe there. We can imagine what she would only be smoking if this is indeed true. And just weeks later, days later she ended up in rehab after this video surfaced. Is this how she's going to be remembered? I hope not.
O'CONNOR: You know, I hope not, too, but this, sadly, it was the last five years of her life that she spent more time in the public eye doing things like this than she actually did in the public eye producing music, which I think is a great tragedy. And I guess that's the toll that addiction takes on people.
After this incident with the video, actually she was questioned by police under suspicion of using crack cocaine, but actually they ended up not charging her for this because they couldn't -- the evidence wasn't just strong enough. But it's sort of that life on the cusp of completely falling apart for a really long time.
LEMON: Yes. Is this a lesson for young people and famous people?
O'CONNOR: You know, I think -- we've seen a lot of people sort of -- and over the years, all kinds of people from you know, years ago, Kurt Cobain, Jimi Hendrix and today now we see, for instance, Lindsay Lohan, was just back in court this week. She was reprimanded by the judge out of her progress report for her probation. And I think that these examples, it's hard to know whether it's the fame that feeds and enables these people or whether we're just seeing what regular, old addiction is but on a global scale, that instead of just a handful of family members and loved ones seeing an addict falling apart, whether it's the entire world seeing them all of a sudden.
LEMON: You know what, Maureen, I appreciate your honesty and your candor about this. And I think a lot of people will hopefully -- hopefully a lot of people will learn a lesson. Thank you for that. Maureen O'Connor from Gawker.com.
O'CONNOR: Sure. Thanks, Don.
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LEMON: All right. Amy Winehouse was 27 years old, and many have notice an eerie similarity, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and other talented but troubled stars died at the same age. CNN's Entertainment reporter Shannon Cook looked into what's being called The 27 Club.
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SHANON COOK, CNN ENTERTAINMENT REPORTER: There's this unofficial thing called The 27 Club, which in order to be in this club, you have to die at the age of 27, as a famous musician.
You know, Kurt Cobain was 27 when he died. Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, and now Amy Winehouse. And, of course, some people think there's some cultish connection here. But it's important to realize that many, many musicians have died and they weren't 27 at the time. But you know, perhaps there's something to it. You know, perhaps by the time these young stars reach this age, they're burnt out from all the touring, from the hard living, from the drain of the spotlight. But I think more than likely, it's just coincidence, Don.
LEMON: Yes because there were a number of singers who die at 21.
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LEMON: You know what, it's maybe the most famous dress on the planet right now, the Duchess of Cambridge's wedding dress. We'll tell you where you can see it now. It's a very prominent place, by the way.
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LEMON: You know, our next report is a kind of story that breaks your heart, but at the same time, manages to give you hope. It's a story of a 9-year-old girl from Washington State who had a compassion for others far beyond her years. Rachel Beckwith was taken from this world far too soon. But her short life is having a huge impact on people who never knew her.
Joe Marino of our affiliate KOMO has her story.
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JOE MARINO, KOMO REPORTER: Rachel Beckwith is among seven people hurt in a chain reaction collision on Interstate 90 earlier this week. Her injuries were the most severe.
At Harborview, doctors realized her spinal cord was severed and told family there was nothing they could do. Loved ones of the 9-year-old want her selfless passion to live on.
VERONICA DEL ROSARIO, AUNT: She cares about other people more than herself.
MARINO: Veronica Del Rosario says her niece always wanted to help others and set out to raise $300 to pay for clean water in developing countries.
DEL ROSARIO: For her birthday she didn't want any present. She told us not to buy her presents. She wanted everyone to give money so that children and parents can have water.
MARINO: But then the accident struck and Rachel's pastor at church decided to keep promoting her fund-raising mission for the non- profit group Charity Water. The Church used Facebook and Twitter to encourage people to give, and thousands of dollars started pouring in by the hour.
PASTOR RYAN MEEKS, THE EAST LAKE COMMUNITY CHURCH: She did what she could, and now she can't. But we could pick up where she left off.
MARINO: Rachel has been on life support since shortly after the crash. But family members decided they would say their final good-byes and tell doctors to disconnect the machines. They say even in Rachel's final hours she keeps teaching others how to give.
DEL ROSARIO: We just want to say thank you to everybody's who's been praying for her and we want to invite everybody to the service tomorrow.
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LEMON: Well, we have learned tonight that Rachel died just a few hours ago after she was removed from life support. And one of the people you saw in that report was Ryan Meeks. He is the founding pastor at Rachel's church, the East Lake Community Church.
Pastor Meeks, thanks for joining us now. How is the family?
MEEKS (via-telephone): Well, they're what you would expect. You know, they're mourning the loss of a beautiful, young girl. At the same time, they're hoping Jesus gives them something to live for beyond this and a hope to see her soon.
And of course, the great story that life is coming out of this death with Rachel's generosity. It's inspired many, and it's been amazing over the last 24 hours, I think. Now she's gone from, I think, $220 to over $23,000 raised for clean water.
LEMON: At such a young age, 9 years old, where does that sort of compassion come from, that sort of awareness about the world?
MEEKS: Well, you know, we've had an ongoing partnership in with Charity Water, the organization that is 100 percent model, where 100 percent of every cent goes to water projects around the world. And she got to hear and listen to the founder, a friend of mine, Scott Harrison speak at our church awhile ago and like many others was inspired to do what she could do. And for a 9-year-old kid, a huge step of faith would be to say hey, for my birthday, I don't want anything. Give to those who are in greater need. And, you know, not everyone's that mature even at 90, and yet, here she is modeling for us at the age of 9 how to live that kind of a life.
LEMON: Looking at your picture, you can see you're at least 20, 30 years old.
MEEKS: Yes.
LEMON: Did she teach you as someone who I'm sure you consider yourself a worldly person. Did she teach you something about life and about the human spirit?
MEEKS: Oh, absolutely. I mean, everyone is certainly encouraged and inspired by her story. Family member who knew her best are the ones that certainly learn the most from as they pour out their hearts and the young girl that they got to live with and love, and they all say the same thing about her, just an overwhelming heart of compassion and selflessness. And she continues to inspire many through this campaign as it continues.
LEMON: All right. Pastor Ryan Meeks, we appreciate it. Best of luck to you and to the family. Please tell them that we are thinking about them, OK?
MEEKS: Will do. Thanks.
LEMON: We want to look at some of the interesting news items that you might have missed throughout this week because it's been a very busy news week.
A snarling leopard went on a frightening rampage in an Indian village. The adult male cat attacked 11 people, including several forest guards who were mauled. Authorities say villagers used knives, stone and sticks to drive back the cat. It reportedly died from its injuries after being subdued with a tranquilizer gun.
Remember Shannon Stone? He's a firefighter who fell to his death just a couple of weeks ago while trying to catch a baseball for his young son at a Texas Rangers game. Well, his death created a stir over stadium safety. Well, the Texas Rangers have announced that they are going to raise the height of all the railings in front of a seating areas and to try to prevent another such tragedy by doing it. The Rangers also will post new warnings around the ballpark.
The most anticipated dress of the year is now on display in London. It is a gown Catherine wore when she married Britain's Prince William. People.com reports the ivory and white satin dress is now the centerpiece at Buckingham Palace's annual summer opening. The gown stands on a special platform topped off with a tiara that the queen loaned Catherine for the wedding.
It is official. "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is history. What does the future hold for the military? We'll hear from an openly gay service member.
But first, a doctor delivers your baby, but the hospital keeps your child until you pay your bill. Does it sound a little crazy? Well, in Indonesia, it happens all the time. But this week's CNN Hero, Arizona native Robin Lim has come up with a solution.
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ROBIN LIM, ACTIVIST: The moment that a woman falls pregnant in Indonesia, she is 300 times more likely to die in the next 12 months than if she was not pregnant.
If you have money you can get excellent medical services, but the poorest people don't always get the services they need. In the hospital here, you cannot take your baby home until you pay the bill. Sometimes the mothers wait outside all day waiting to get in to feed their baby and to change their baby's diaper.
My name is Robin Lim. I'm a midwife.
Most people call me Ibu Robin because Ibu means mother. I've learned about the dangers of motherhood when my own sister, she died as a complication of her third pregnancy. I was just really crushed.
I came to Bali to reinvent my life.
Hi, baby, hi.
I started the clinic run by Indonesian midwives. We offer prenatal care, birth services. No matter how poor they are, no matter their race or religion, we teach new graduating classes of midwives how to do a more natural, gentle birth. The women can stay as long as they want.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): Robin helps poor people. She cares about me very much, like my own mother. I'm extremely grateful. Each baby, each adult deserves a clean, healthy, loving environment. Those are a human right.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: The Pentagon just officially repealed "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," permitting openly gay people to serve.
It is a major military milestone, especially for veterans such as Jonathan Hopkins, a former army captain who was victimized by the policy. Hopkins earned three bronze stars but was honorably discharged after someone outed him. He now serves as a board member of Outserve, a group for openly gay military men and women.
I spoke to him about the military's future now that "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is no more.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) LEMON: Do you see a parallel here between integrating the military, between among races and also now among gay people and straight people?
JONATHAN HOPKINS, BOARD MEMBER FOR OUTSERVE: I definitely see a parallel in getting to a state of mutual understanding, and just basically making decisions based off facts instead of stereotypes. Where I think this is going to be different, we are much further along when it comes to acceptance of gays and lesbians now, today, than we were in 1947 when Harry Truman ended or started the end of segregation by executive order.
LEMON: Real quickly here, Jonathan. Is it generational, yes or no?
HOPKINS: Explain that.
LEMON: Is it generational? Do you think younger people in the military are more accepting of it?
HOPKINS: Totally. The biggest, most concerned people are senior personnel in the military.
LEMON: Would you be reinstated? Would you want to be?
HOPKINS: I think there are a lot of different ways I can serve my country. So I will explore those before I make a decision whether I actually go back in. But I know that there are other people that want to rejoin the military because that's what they love and I personally love it as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Jonathan Hopkins.
There will be a 60-day waiting period before "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" officially goes away.
Now to a bizarre mystery. A woman and a little boy dead within days of each other at a California Millionaire's Mansion. She was found hanging naked and bound from a balcony. Her family is speaking out. And here's Sandra Endo.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SANDRA ENDO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (via-telephone): It started last Monday when police say six-year-old Max Shacknai fell down the stairs of this 27-room mansion near San Diego and was rushed to the hospital.
Two days later 32-year-old Rebecca Zahou was found naked, hanging from a second story balcony in the home, her hands and feet tied together.
(on camera) What strikes you as most unusual about this case?
ROY FRANK, SAN DIEGO SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: You know what, the case is suspicious, there's no question about it. And any time you have a female that is found in a backyard unclothed and her feet and hands are bound, that becomes concerning. ENDO (voice-over): Pharmaceutical company CEO Jonah Shacknai is Max's father and Zahou's millionaire boyfriend. His son later died from the injuries. Shacknai says he wasn't there when Zahou died and what happened to her is still a mystery.
FRANK: In this case suicide and homicide at times can look very, very similar. And it's important to really take your time, process that evidence, and usually that evidence will solve the mystery.
ENDO: But Zahou's sister is telling people she doesn't believe Rebecca would take her own life. She told CNN affiliate KFMB, "My sister did not commit a suicide. My sister was not depressed. My sister was not frantic. My sister was planning to call my parents the next day and was planning to keep me posted about Max the next day."
It's a sentiment other people who knew the victim also tells CNN. More than 15 detectives are working on the case, and officials say they are taking the accounts of people who knew her very seriously.
As for Max's death, police are preliminarily calling it an accident. But they say it's definitely part of the equation when considering Zahou.
FRANK: Any time there is a death such as in Rebecca's case, we always look at victimology, what happened days and weeks before and even months before. So Max's case would be of interest to us.
ENDO: Arizona police records show a rocky relationship between Jonah Shacknai and Max's mother Dina, with both filing domestic disturbance reports in 2008 and 2009. But the two issued a statement Monday downplaying those records, saying "While our marriage did not work out as either of us had hoped, it did produce a wonderful son, Max, who both of us loved very much. His loss is unimaginable."
(on camera) Local law enforcement officials say they are waiting for what could be the missing pieces to this puzzle, the forensic reports, and that could take a matter of weeks.
Sandra Endo, CNN, Coronado, California.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right, Sandra.
Up next, nerd heaven. Have you heard about comic-con? And are you as unfamiliar with it as I am? We'll tell you what it's all about -- next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm amaze. I'm overwhelmed, actually. This is beyond.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, absolutely. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The action figures and video games.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The toys for our kids.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: It is the Mecca for all trekkies, stormtroopers and X-men this weekend. The San Diego Comic-con is a massive pop culture celebration with a fantasy and sci-fi bent.
Well, for those of you who just don't get it, and don't be ashamed if that's you, here's actor Seth Green to explain.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SETH GREEN, ACTOR: People come to Comic-Con expecting something, you know. And if you don't like any of this stuff, you're not going to have fun. It's for the people that like it. I mean, would you go to an electronics trade show if you had no interest in electronics?
(LAUGHTER)
(MUSIC)
GREEN: When you walk into Comic-Con what you'll mostly likely be met with is an overwhelming amount of visual stimulus. It's all this stuff specific to the genre of comics and sci-fi, super heroes and you know, space and things like that. It's become a little bit like a Sundance because some of the most major motion pictures that are being made now are based on comic book properties.
I had a tipping point myself a few years ago at Comic-Con where it ceased to be the nerdy safe haven that it once was where geeks, like myself, could commune without fear of persecution and became a place where there's a human zoo element because there are so many other people who are like, oh, so this is Comic-Con. You know, they want to be part of the spectacle.
If you intend to survive Comic-Con, you should certainly have passes for every day that you are there.
You have to hydrate. It's really, really hot. And no matter how powerful the air conditioning is in the convention center, you are overwhelmed by just how many people there are.
Also we have a list of the events and things that you actually want to witness, and then check them off so you can strategize a path through there. It's very difficult to maneuver. And there's a lot going on.
All right, see you there.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: The San Diego Comic-Con is also a huge magnet for celebrities. Many of them are stopping by to talk to CNN, including a man who is nothing short of a comic con royalty. Luke Skywalker himself, Mark Hamill, who is amazed at how much the event has grown over the years.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK HAMILL, ACTOR: When movie companies and gaming companies started sponsorship, it just jumped dramatically because once they figured out that this was a great foundation to be a spring board to launch product, then it was all over. I remember the year when they said hey, we broke a record. There's 500 people here. That was like '74.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: All right. Let's check some of your headlines at this hour.
Police in Norway say it is possible that more than one person carried out a pair of deadly terror attacks that killed at least 92 people. Local media identifying this man as a lone suspect in custody now. His name is Anders Behring Breivik described as a right wing Christian fundamentalist. 85 people died in a mass shooting at a youth camp run by the ruling Labor Party. At least seven others died in an earlier car bombing in the Capital of Oslo.
Congressional leaders from both parties held a late afternoon meeting on Capitol Hill trying to forge some sort of agreement to raise the nation's debt ceiling. They also met for less than an hour this morning at the White House with President Obama. There's still no deal, but they have agreed to try to reach a compromise before Sunday night to the avoid disruptions to the world financial markets.
Tonight, the world is mourning Amy Winehouse. A singer blessed with a voice beyond her years, but cursed with addictions that may have cost her life. London police say they do not note what killed the Grammy winner. They found her today in her apartment, but many are speculating her death is connected to her substance abuse.
Retired Army General John Shalikashvili has died of complications from a stroke. Born in Poland, Shalikashvili was the first foreign born chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He came to the U.S. as a teenager and reportedly learned English from watching John Wayne movies. President Barack Obama today called him a genuine soldier, statesman whose extraordinary life represented the promise of America. The general was 75 years old.
A cross made of steel beams from New York's fallen World Trade Center is now in a permanent new home. It was moved from a church in lower Manhattan to the nearby site where the national September 11th Memorial and Museum will stand. A construction worker discovered the perfectly formed cross standing upright in the rubble of Ground Zero.
I'm Don Lemon at the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta. Thank you so much for watching. I'll see you back here tomorrow at 6:00, 7:00, and 10:00 p.m. Eastern. Good night.
