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Bastrop County, Texas, Evacuees to Learn More on Fate of Houses; Tweets Could Land Two in Jail in Mexico; Changing Paths After 9/11; Flood Warnings in the Northeast; Wildfires Kill Four, Destroy 1,000 Plus Homes; Four Killed In Nevada Shooting; Family of Slain Yale Student Sues; Social Security Paid to Dead People; Social Security Checks Missing in North Carolina; Bartz Out as Yahoo CEO; Judge: No New DNA Tests in Knox Case; Amanda Knox Appealing Sentence; Attorney Details Homeless Man's Death; Spotlight on Rick Perry Tonight

Aired September 07, 2011 - 14:00   ET

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

RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: And we want to start this hour with a major development in the Kelly Thomas case, a story that we have been following closely on this show.

You may remember, Thomas is the homeless man in Fullerton, California, who was allegedly beaten to death by six Fullerton police officers. In just a few minutes, we may get a better understanding of how Thomas died.

His family and their attorney are releasing some of Thomas' medical records and new graphic details into what may have killed Kelly Thomas. Those are being revealed at this news conference that should be getting under way momentarily here.

You're looking a live picture of the podium there. They are ready to go.

Now let me show you another picture. And we want to warn you, this picture is graphic, but it may give you an understanding of the brutality involved in this man's death.

This is Kelly Thomas before and after the alleged beating in July. Witnesses say he was repeatedly beaten, tasered, kicked, and hog-tied by these officers.

We want to be clear, the Orange County coroner has not determined or released the official cause of death for Thomas, but his family and their attorneys say the medical records, medical experts and illustrations they are about to present today are all proof that Thomas died because of what those officers are accused of doing to him.

We're keeping an eye on the details coming out of that news conditions, and we'll bring you much more later this hour.

Now, to Texas, where property losses from a year of devastating wildfires have been colossal But loss of life has been low, and that's reason for thanks when everything else has been lost.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICHELLE BIELINSKI, FIRE VICTIM: I am the luckiest person in the world. My family is safe. Now I need to check on my neighbors.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Just since Sunday, however, four people have died in two separate fires, and authorities fear there may be victims we don't even know about yet. So, today, a 100-member search team from Texas' Taskforce 1 plans to fan out across Bastrop County, southeast of Austin, site of by far the biggest fire among the dozens now active statewide.

Here's an interactive map that you can actually link to from the Web site of the Texas Forest Service. The Bastrop Fire has burned more than 33,000 acres, almost 800 homes. It is now 30 percent contained.

A fire northwest of Houston burned some 5,000 acres in Grimes County, up from 3,000 yesterday. That one has torched 75 homes and threatens many more.

My colleague, Jim Spellman, is watching the battle in Bastrop.

And Jim, I understand that evacuees that don't know whether their house is burned or not may now be getting some answers.

JIM SPELLMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Just a few hours ago, Randi, authorities posted the addresses of about half of the homes burned here in Bastrop.

For a lot of people, it was a relief to at least know that their home was burned, or at least know what was going on, because a lot of people here, even though they sort of knew the result, they knew they were in the burn zone, to find out for sure, at least they could exhale and kind of move towards the next thing. There's been a lot of anxiety about that, Randi.

We got to catch up with a couple of the people here trying to find out. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL LUDWIG, FIRE VICTIM: Not knowing what the end result is going to be, I'm pretty convinced in my mind that it's not going to be good. But then trying to figure out where we go from here.

LINDA AREBALOS, FIRE VICTIM: Our house can be replaced, but I think all of the memories is what really hurts. It hits the heart, because I start thinking about my babies' pictures and the things they made in elementary, and the things I put up to save to give to their kids. And it's gone. Yes, it hurts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SPELLMAN: The neighbors here are -- the people here in the community, they are really relying on each other, Randi. A lot of people are taking in other families. Several displaced families might be joining up and kind of renting a house together.

You really see people coming together. But it's just going to -- when this fire is out, and the firefighters leave, this town is going to have just such a long road to come back and feel like home again for a lot of these people. Even if they get insurance money and they can rebuild, somebody described it to me as looking at a sort of blackened temple to the past that they don't want to come back to.

It's going to be tough -- Randi.

KAYE: Jim, we're getting some word about an arson fire somewhere in Texas. Do you have any information on that?

SPELLMAN: Yes. Authorities are looking for four teenagers, two boys, two girls, from a fire. It's nowhere near this fire. It's a separate fire. But it did destroy a handful of homes.

It's unbelievable, that anybody would even think of doing something like that. These drought conditions are so extreme, that even just a spark from a chain hanging off a mobile home or something is enough to spark a fire.

Nonetheless, people out there setting fires on purpose. Even though that fire was not near here, people here are talking about that. It was in the newspaper and on the local media.

And they're not happy. I mean, people are really upset given the serious ramifications of a fire, that anybody would even think about doing something like that.

KAYE: Yes, that is tough to think about. Jim Spellman, thank you for that update.

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAYE: Other news developing this hour.

The death toll from a shooting at an IHOP in Carson City, Nevada, has risen to four. Eleven people were shot when a man opened fire inside the restaurant. Three of those killed were members of the Army National Guard. They're identified as Major Heath Kelly (ph) of Reno, Nevada; Sergeant 1st Class Miranda McEleney (ph) of Reno; and Sergeant 1st Class Christian Reege (ph) of Carson City.

Police say shooter Edward Sencion was carrying an assault rifle and a pistol when he entered the IHOP. He fired the rifle, then turned the gun on himself. There is no immediate word on a motive yet today.

A legal victory in Italy for American exchange student Amanda Knox. A judge today turned down the prosecutor's request for a new DNA testing in the case.

Knox is fighting to have her conviction overturned in the 2007 death of her British house mate Meredith Kercher. The judge also rejected prosecution efforts to introduce newly-found records about the original testing. Knox's attorneys have been working to cast doubt on the DNA evidence found on the knife used to kill Kercher. The appeals hearing has been adjourned until September 23rd.

We'll have a live report on this at the bottom of the hour.

Drill, baby, drill. The oil industry says it could deliver 1.4 million new jobs if allowed to expand drilling off parts of the protected East and West Coasts, in the Gulf, and in Alaska. Oil producers claim the new drilling would boost tax rolls by $800 billion and increase domestic energy production by nearly 50 percent.

Charges of terrorism and sabotage for tweets. You heard me right, tweets. Now two people could do 30 years of hard time all for 140 characters.

That chilling story is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: There is no doubt Twitter is becoming a more popular form of communication all around the world. I tweet all the time about what's coming up on this show, what stories might interest me. I'm sure many of you tweet as well, along with me.

You saw it help Egyptians topple the Mubarak government earlier this year. It was blamed for inciting some of those violent riots that we saw in London just last month. And just a couple of weeks ago, it's how word spread so quickly about that earthquake that struck near Washington, D.C. But now listen to this story.

In Mexico, two people are under arrest, facing up to 30 years in prison, for some of their recent tweets. That's right, 30 years. They're accused of terrorism for sending messages that turned out to be just rumors.

The rumors were that a school in the city of Veracruz was under attack. Here are a couple of those tweets.

"My sister-in-law just called me all upset. They just kidnapped five children from the school."

And then this one: "Remain calm. I think that the children should be in their homes. Go get them."

Now, once those messages starting spreading on Twitter and Facebook, panic ensued, and apparently dozens of car crashes even followed as parents raced to the school to try to get their kids.

Joining me now to talk much more about this case is Marvin Ammori. He's a lawyer with expertise in Internet and freedom of speech law.

So, Marvin, tell us what you think about this case.

MARVIN AMMORI, LAWYER AND INTERNET FREE SPEECH EXPERT: Well, I mean, this case shows both the good side of Twitter and the bad side of Twitter. So, on the good side, in Mexico, there's a big drug war going on. It's been going on for many years. And people no longer trust journalists and mainstream media, which has been afraid to cover a lot of the violence.

So people have turned to social media, to Twitter, to Facebook, and it's been actually a huge success. People don't leave their homes in the morning without checking Twitter to determine if there's violence in the streets. But on the bad side, when there's a false rumor, people will trust Twitter more than they trust the government or the mainstream media, and they might respond and over-respond, and there might be a crisis, which is what happened here.

KAYE: So you're saying because this all happened in a violent part of Mexico, it had a different effect, do you think?

AMMORI: I think so. I mean, let's think of what would happen in the U.S.

In the U.S., if there were some tweets about a kidnapping at a school, you would Google it, you would read a story from CNN.com, or Reuters, or some other news outlet you trust. You would check the Twitter feed of your government officials, and then you would try to determine if it's accurate.

In Mexico, there's not much trust for the authorities, so people rely on Twitter. And so I think one of the reasons why it happened in Mexico is because of that, that lack of trust in the authorities.

KAYE: Let's talk about intent here. From what I understand, one of these people who is accused actually just re-tweeted the tweet from the original person. I mean, we all do that all the time. So, do you think that will make a difference in how this case gets prosecuted?

AMMORI: Yes, that's a very interesting question. It seems as though you simply can't stop people from re-tweeting rumors.

And the people who are re-tweeting often were thinking they were doing a service to the other public that there was a crime going on, that there was kidnapping. So I think that the intent of a re-tweeter would be pretty hard to prove that that person was a prankster.

In fact, both of the people under arrest, one is a math teacher and one a well-known journalist and radio broadcaster. There's not much evidence that either of them were deliberately trying to cause a problem.

What it seems is going on is that the Mexican government hasn't been able to make people feel safe. And when things like this happen -- there was an arson earlier that day -- when things like this happen, people tend to find -- governments tend to find scapegoats. And so it's seems as though government is trying to blame people for their own failings.

KAYE: Do you think something like this could actually happen in the U.S.? Might someone be accused and possibly even jailed for 30 years for a tweet? AMMORI: I would hope not. I believe that in every country, government officials try to pass the buck and blame someone else for their own inability to keep people safe. But I think in the U.S., there would be a huge backlash, especially trying to put somebody in jail for 30 years. And we have seen a worldwide backlash both in Mexico and around the world on trying to prosecute people for tweets, especially in a state that can't keep its people safe.

KAYE: Marvin Ammori, such an interesting case. We will of course continue to follow it. Thank you so much for your time today.

After the attacks of 9/11, a Wall Street professional is motivated to leave his lucrative career behind to open his own business. We'll share his story right after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: This Sunday marks 10 years since the attacks of September 11th, a date that changed many lives and for some marked the beginning of a new journey. And right now we want to introduce you to a man who gave up a high-paying secure job on Wall Street to start up his own business.

Here's Christine Romans.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the ticket that changed David Sandelovsky's life and career forever.

DAVID SANDELOVSKY, OWNER, SPORTCLIPS: It's a round trip. Only one way was taken.

ROMANS (on camera): September 11th.

I was on my way into basically work on 9/11. I never made it in.

ROMANS (voice-over): In fact, it took him three years to return to his job as a currency trader on Wall Street. When he did, after a leave of absence, Wall Street had changed. He had, too.

SANDELOVSKY: The culture wasn't what I wanted anymore. I didn't like the way they treated people.

ROMANS: That's when Sandelovsky pulled a professional 180, leaving his lucrative career and salary to open his own business, sports- themed barber shops.

(on camera): So you went literally from pressing a button, and hundreds of millions of dollars worth of money moving around in trades, to selling $23 haircuts?

SANDELOVSKY: Yes. And it's $18 with a discount.

(LAUGHTER) SANDELOVSKY: That is -- yes, that is. And this isn't about money. I mean, hopefully this will make good money over time. But this isn't ever going to make a ton of money. But that doesn't seem to be as important anymore.

ROMANS (voice-over): What is important to Sandelovsky now is making a difference.

SANDELOVSKY: This is me building a business. This is having employees. This is trying to have a value system that's mine, I get to enforce with my people.

This is mentoring people. This is client contact.

Thank you very much.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you very much.

ROMANS: He may not actually pick up a pair of scissors, but he's hands-on in just about every other way.

SANDELOVSKY: I understood this was crazy. A lot of people don't get it.

It's a very different world. And people forget. And people make friends on Wall Street.

They say they get it. They don't get it. Not when you're making seven figures. You don't get it.

ROMANS: His Wall Street friends may not get it, but his family certainly does.

(on camera): What does your family think about your career change?

SANDELOVSKY: I was surprised that they were actually incredibly proud of me. One son came and he set up the computers for me. The other one came out one day -- we had just opened -- he took coupons and he went door to door to businesses and started handing out coupons.

My daughter came and brought her friend from high school. She was proud. She wanted to show her friends what her dad had done. I mean, I was beaming.

ROMANS (voice-over): Ten years ago, on September 11, 2001, when Sandelovsky began his morning commute, the ticket he purchased bought him more than just a seat on the train.

(on camera): Why do you keep it?

SANDELOVSKY: A memory. And every time -- I just got chills. Every time I look at it, I think of what happened.

ROMANS (voice-over): It's a day he'll never forget.

Christine Romans, CNN, Somerset, New Jersey. (END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: And be sure to join Christine Romans for a special 9/11 anniversary edition of "YOUR BOTTOM LINE" this weekend. Christine will talk about how to handle the anniversary both personally and with your family. That's Saturday morning at 9:30 Eastern.

All this week, CNN marks a decade since the 9/11 attacks. Tonight, at 11:00 Eastern, Dr. Sanjay Gupta looks at the health problems of survivors and first responders in "Terror in the Dust."

And on Sunday, CNN will have special live coverage of the remembrance events throughout the day.

Dear Mr. President, if you could write Barack Obama a letter about how to fix the economy, what would you ask for? We ask one small businessman, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: CNN Money asked 10 small businesspeople the one thing that they would ask President Obama to do to make it easier for them to hire. The opinions from these hands-on workers range from lowering health care costs to just getting out of the way.

Joining me now for today's "Taking the Lead," John Kunkel, the CEO of 50 Eggs Restaurant Group, the parent company of Lime Fresh Mexican Grill in Miami.

John, thank you so much for coming on the show today.

Tell us, in your letter to the president, what would you ask him to do?

JOHN KUNKEL, CEO, 50 EGGS RESTAURANT GROUP: Well, you know, I think health care is a looming thing for all small business owners. And, you know, the tax rate and some of the tax incentives are really some of the things that challenge and worry a lot of small business owners.

KAYE: Many of the people who wrote these letters to the president for our CNN.com mentioned the importance of job training. How do you feel about that?

KUNKEL: Well, you know, in the restaurant business, we're constantly training. And technical job training doesn't particularly benefit us in that way that it would other businesses.

You know, I'm definitely more of a fan of putting dollars back into the pocket of the people that actually create jobs. I understand that the programs have a resource and a reason behind them, but they're not something that typically affects us directly. We haven't really seen a whole lot of use for a lot of those programs in our segment of the business.

KAYE: Are you on board with changing the payroll taxes? KUNKEL: I'm definitely on board with extending the payroll tax cuts. You know, those are helpful, without a doubt, as long as -- as well as some of the depreciation credits that were along the way.

I think at the end of the day, that most of those incentives help, but they're not taking the drastic steps needed to really create an economic environment for business to really prosper. I think that health care and the tax rates as a whole are really those looming things that we look at.

Health care for a small restaurant is really something that just worries everyone. It's constantly on the minds of anybody that's involved in day-to-day restaurants. And, you know, it's a huge concern going forward, what's going to happen with that.

KAYE: In your letter to the president, which I actually read, it's very well-written. You actually say that you're cautiously optimistic about what you might hear from the president tomorrow night.

Why is that?

KUNKEL: Well, listen, I'm optimistic because I'm a business owner, an American, and I want to see great things happen with the economy for my own business, as well as the rest of the country. But I think that so much of what's happening now is more about approval ratings and elections coming up, as opposed to really moving the needle.

I think we're dealing with two very different points of views from government right now that have to do with investing in infrastructure and growing the government, and scaling back on that. And as we saw with the debate over the debt ceiling, you know, there's not a whole lot that's getting done these days.

So, the economic environment, at least in south Florida, and as we go throughout the country, that's kind of a feeling across the board. We're all cautiously optimistic. We're hoping for the best, but I don't think anybody expects real change. And certainly not from the speech.

KAYE: All right. John Kunkel, we appreciate your letter to the president and we appreciate your time on the show today.

Thank you.

KUNKEL: Thank you for having me.

KAYE: The government sending millions of dollars to dead people. Really? Next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: It is about half past the hour. Here's a look at the stories that you might have missed.

Much of the U.S. dealing with extreme weather today. The northeast is getting drenched with remnants of Tropical Storm Lee with making flash flood watches and warnings for parts of Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey.

In Texas, four people have now died in wildfires there. More than a thousand homes have been destroyed since Sunday. The biggest fire right now is in Bastrop County. The 100-member search team is there to look for people who may not have evacuated. Fires have been burning in Texas for nearly 300 days.

The death toll from a shooting at an ihop restaurant in Carson City, Nevada has now risen to four. Eleven people were shot when a man opened fire inside that restaurant. Three of those killed were members of the Army National Guard.

They are identified as Sergeant First Class Miranda McLaney of Reno, Nevada, Major Heath Kelly of Reno and Sergeant First Class Christian Reed of Carson City.

Police say shooter Edward Sencion was carrying an assault rifle and a pistol when he entered the ihop. He fired the rifle and turned the gun on himself. No word on a motive.

In Mexico, a tweet could put two people behind bars for up to 30 years. Prosecutors say the two posted false rumors about school attacks on Twitter and Facebook causing chaos on the streets of Vera Cruz.

One of the post claimed five children has been kidnapped, another mentioned a bomb threat. Parents raced to school to pick up kids sparking car crashes. The two tweeters now face charges would you believe of terrorism.

In Connecticut, the family of Yale student Annie Lay had filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the university alleging the school did little to protect women on campus from aggressive male behavior. Lay was killed by a male technician in a research lab in 2009. The university says the lawsuit has no merit.

Millions of dollars in Social Security checks being sent out to dead people. An estimated $40 million has been doled out to deceased beneficiaries based on the most recent audit in 2008.

In North Carolina, more than 100 Social Security checks that were to be delivered to the town of Trinity have simply disappeared. The postal service has been working to track down those missing checks.

Fired over the phone. That's just what happened to former Yahoo CEO Carol Bartz. In an e-mail to employees Tuesday afternoon, Bartz announced the firing. During her tenure, Bartz failed to deliver on her promise to turn the slumping company around mainly due to lost ad revenue to competitors, Facebook and Google.

And we'll leave you with a look at the markets right now. The Dow is up 246 points.

Next, a legal victory in Italy for Amanda Knox and her father talks to CNN. We'll go live to Italy in today's "Globe Trekking."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: A legal victory in Italy for American exchange student Amanda Knox. The judge today turned down prosecutors' request for new DNA testing in the case.

Knox is fighting to have her case overturned in the 2007 death of her British housemate, Meredith Kercher. Knox's attorneys have been working to cast doubt on the DNA evidence found on the knife that they believed was used to kill Kercher.

CNN's Matthew Chance caught up with Knox's father, Curt, after today's hearing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CURT KNOX, AMANDA KNOX'S FATHER: The appeals court asked for the independent review and they came back with a very precise accurate report. I think what that does is it really says that they believe in that. There's no reason do another review by the prosecution who were originally against an independent review to start with.

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Because these independent experts basically cite the DNA evidence used to convict your daughter is unreliable?

KNOX: That's exactly what it says. It basically -- they have no case. There is no case left and I'm very hopeful that by the end of the month, we'll get to bring Amanda home.

CHANCE: Do you think that what we're witnessing now is the prosecution case, which you were always obviously standing against is now falling apart at the seams?

KNOX: Well, if you take a look at each of the components of the evidence and you eliminate the bra and the knife and anybody that knew about their whereabouts, that says they didn't know it, there is no case. There is none. I mean, Amanda and Raffaele were not at the house when Meredith lost her life.

CHANCE: How optimistic are you though, given your experience with the Italian justice system, what you've been through in that trial that convicted Amanda of this killing, how optimistic are you really now that this evidence is going to feed into that process and you'll see your daughter walk free?

KNOX: You know, I've watched the appeals court act very differently during this trial. It really appears to me that they want to find the truth. And you know, I'm very hopeful now, even after the response that we've just received that by the end of the month, we'll get to bring Amanda and Raffaele home.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: And Matthew Chance joins us now from Italy. Matthew, is sounds like certainly he's saying that he's hopeful, but is there reason for optimism do you think for the Knox family? CHANCE: Well, certainly Curt Knox there being very optimistic about the chances of this conviction. For 26 years, remember, for Amanda Knox being overturned. But I think it's important to remember, it's not a done deal.

There's lots of other evidence that the jury in this appeal will have to consider. There's lots of circumstantial evidence, which at least apparently connects Amanda Knox with the killing.

Ultimately, the jury and the judge will decide. So it's not just on this one ruling today. It's a positive step though from the Amanda Knox point of view.

KAYE: Was the victim's family in the courtroom today?

CHANCE: No. Meredith Kercher, of course, killed back in 2007, her family not in the court today. They've kept a very low profile throughout this. They were represented by their attorney, though, and he made some comments afterwards saying that he kind of agreed with the judge not to look for more investigations.

But he didn't consider this to be a defeat. The Meredith Kercher family, a very keen for justice to be done in this case obviously and they're very keen to remind everybody out there that in fact it was their daughter, Meredith Kercher that is the true victim of this case.

And they've objected on many occasions to this idea that Amanda Knox has been made out to be the victim in so many instances. But obviously, they're watching this clearly very closely indeed, Randi.

KAYE: Yes, I'm sure it's very difficult for both families involved. Matthew Chance in Italy. Matthew, thank you.

And now let's take a moment to remember the victim in this case. Meredith Kercher, the 21-year-old student from England was studying in Italy as part of an exchange program. She was there only two months before the murder.

Her older sister wrote a letter to the judge hearing this latest appeal questioning the decision to possibly throw out key evidence in the case. She also said that she and her family can't find a day of peace as the appeals process continues to drag on.

Kelly Thomas' family and attorney are calling what allegedly happened at the hands of Fullerton police "murder." They're going forward with medical reports, which they say are proof. We'll have that story in 90 seconds.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: For the first time we are getting a glimpse into what may have killed Kelly Thomas. He's the homeless man from Fullerton, California who was allegedly beaten to death by six Fullerton police officers.

We've been covering the investigation into his death very closely on this program. His family and their attorney went public today with some very graphic and revealing developments at this press conference.

The details come directly from medical records released by the hospital to Kelly Thomas' family. We're going to speak with Kelly's dad, Ron Thomas, in just a moment about all of this.

But before we go any further, we have to warn you, the pictures and the images that you are about to see are graphic. Some of them are pretty hard to stomach. But we want to show them to you to help you understand the force and the brutality involved in this man's death.

Take a look. This is Kelly Thomas before and after his alleged beating on July 5th. Witnesses say what began with a search of his backpack and reports of car burglaries ended like this.

Until now, that was the only photo that gave us a real look at Kelly Thomas' injuries and we want to be clear that the Orange County coroner has not determined or released the official cause of death for Thomas.

But during today's press conference, the Thomas family attorney went into detail about these revealing images. You're looking at illustrations created by the attorney and a team of medical experts. They detail the injuries on Kelly Thomas' body based on the medical records. The family attorney says they're proof of how Kelly Thomas died. Proof of what those six Fullerton officers are accused of doing to him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GARO MARDIROSSIAN, KELLY THOMAS FAMILY ATTORNEY: A pistol whipped him repeatedly by pounding him on his head. As he did that, as that officer did that, he caused serious injury and eventual brain death.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: That's just a few of the details that we're learning about. Ron Thomas, Kelly's father is going to join us over the phone in just a moment. We'll get his reaction.

But first, I want to go to David Begnaud, he's covering this story for CNN affiliate KTLA. Both David and Ron will be joining us from Los Angeles.

David, I want to talk briefly about what we found out during this press conference. Those records reveal doctors determined a cause of death for Kelly Thomas, blunt trauma to his head. What evidence do the medical records give for that?

DAVID BEGNAUD, KTLA REPORTER: Well, the medical records specifically indicate with radiological scans that were obtained from the hospital that Kelly not only had a broken cheekbone, but also the bridge of his nose was broken.

Randi, inside the nose there's a plate. It's a thin broad plate if you will. That was also broken. The attorney says that was done by the force of these officers. Whether or not they may have used the butt of a taser, whether they used their knees, whether they used their hands, something caused that massive damage to his face. And so far, we know the cheek, the nose and the bone inside the nose were broken.

KAYE: What do you think was most revealing in terms of what was laid out today?

BEGNAUD: It was interesting, on the medical form which I actually have in my hand here. At the bottom of the medical form, there is actually the word assault. That is the word from doctors. Now it's misspelled.

But the attorney says that's exactly what he believes is the word used by doctors to describe how they think Kelly Thomas died. Now again, we've not heard the cause of death from the coroner. The Orange County coroner hasn't divulged that yet.

But for the doctor to use head trauma and assault that for the family is clear that Kelly Thomas died at the hands of these Fullerton police officers.

KAYE: And as you said, we don't have the coroner's report yet so we don't have the official report. But is the lawyer in the family confident in these findings?

BEGNAUD: Well, they are. In fact, what they're hoping and the attorney was quite clear, he's releasing this for one reason. He's trying to put pressure on this Orange County district attorney to come forward with criminal charges.

I got to tell you, Randi, if this DA comes out with a report that does not charge these six officers criminally, it's going to be quite a day here in southern California.

The fuel and anger for this story has been driven by the people. They've come up with their own blog. They posted things on Youtube. The people in Fullerton and Orange County are driving this story. The DA wanted the people to see this so they could know what happened to Kelly.

KAYE: And David, Fullerton police actually released a statement to us about this today. The issue they say the issue is really between Mr. Thomas and the coroner's office and it wouldn't be appropriate for us to comment. We're awaiting the results from the coroner and the DA's investigation. Just very quickly, David, what is the mood there in Fullerton?

BEGNAUD: Anger, persistent anger that has not subsided. Well, this happened on July 5th to Kelly Thomas. Kelly Thomas was rushed to the hospital. He was pronounced brain-dead on July 10th. Ever since then, every Saturday there is a protest at the Fullerton Police Department.

Again, those six officers, they're not on the job, but they are being paid and collecting benefits and the people of Fullerton are angry. But this story has gone well beyond Fullerton. It's national thanks to CNN and international as you hear the taser behind me.

The attorney is using that to illustrate exactly how he believes these officers tased Kelly twice in the chest and twice in the flank to use it to bring him down.

KAYE: All right, David Begnaud our affiliate reporter from KTLA. David, thank you very much.

Now I want to bring in Ron Thomas, Kelly Thomas' father. Ron, tell us what you think of the details that were revealed today?

RON THOMAS, KELLY'S FATHER (via telephone): Well, I've known about the details for some time. We just couldn't bring it out or I couldn't bring it out, but they're extremely accurate. They were analyzed by a team of doctors, professionals. So we know they're 100 percent accurate. It hurts me so bad to understand what my son went through. It just really, really hurts me. Go ahead.

KAYE: No, no. You finish. I'm sorry.

THOMAS: I'm a marshal artist. I'm a master and taught techniques for years to police officers, even Marines going to Iraq and Afghanistan, special techniques. I know what my son must have went through, how horrible it was. The extreme beating that he took. It's clearly to me aggravated murder.

KAYE: Is that what you think this evidence proves as we still wait for the coroner's report?

THOMAS: Absolutely, absolutely. The damage to him, everything that's gone on to him, it's all very, very conclusive. To me, it's aggravated murder. Absolutely, not by all six. They're all responsible for his death, but in different degrees. But at least one brutally murdered him and a second closely involved thereafter.

KAYE: So many people in that community so angry about what happened to your son. We've seen the protests there. Why did you decide to go public with these medical findings?

THOMAS: Well, we need to get the DA to do something. They're dragging their feet. The coroner is still waiting for the rest of the toxicologies. It can't take that long at all. It just can't take that long. We need to get the DA to do something. It's extremely evident what has happened. You know, it's time for them to act.

KAYE: Do you still have questions about what happened that night?

THOMAS: I may have one or two technical questions in my mind. You know, I also just happen to teach investigative techniques. So I do have just some technical questions that I will get answered eventually. But overall, no, I've talked to many people, interviewed many people, I've done my own analysis. I'm pretty convinced of what went on.

KAYE: We've reached out to the Fullerton Police Department many times. I'm curious if you've heard from them. THOMAS: I have heard from them. I talked to the acting chief.

KAYE: What does he say?

THOMAS: It was two or three times a week. Now it's just maybe once a week. But he can't tell me much anymore. I know they've basically been put under a gag order by the city attorney on this, but they're not releasing any type of details.

KAYE: You know, Ron, we spend so much time talking about your son on this program. Talking about what happened to him, but what would you like us and our viewers really to know about your son?

THOMAS: Very lovable person. I'm looking at the pictures you're posting up there and it makes me real sad. I got to turn around. Just a very, very loving person, a great son. His brother and sister miss him terribly.

His community of Fullerton love him and miss him. That's why they're so mad and angry. I didn't do all of this. It's a community. His community that's doing all of this. They call themselves Kelly's army and they're mad. They're very, very mad over this.

KAYE: Well, I know you miss him a lot as well. I know the community want answers and we're working towards that as well along with you. Ron Thomas, thank you so much. I know this is a difficult time for your family. We appreciate you calling in.

THOMAS: Thank you so much.

KAYE: We'll have more news after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Today we're starting a new segment on the show called "Face the Music." Every day at this time, we'll be calling out someone who we really think has to put it bluntly screwed up.

Today it is Aaron Marjella, who you say? Well, he's a former firefighter taking heat pardon the pun for collecting state disability pay. This little gem comes to us courtesy of an investigation by Brian Polson from our affiliate WITI in Milwaukee.

Aaron is on disability because he bumped his elbow and suffered some nerve damage. But if he's in so much pain that he can't work and collecting permanent disability then why is he reportedly doing this?

Running marathons and taking part in triathalons. Divorce records for Aaron apparently show that he's getting paid more than $4,000 a month to not work. That's over 50 grand a year. With all his free time, WITI found that he's trained for and run in seven marathons.

This is after he was declared him, quote, "unfit for duty." Seems to me if you can run seven marathons, you can handle a water hose and climb a ladder. Maybe it's just me. Here's another reason the guy's career is going up in flames. Aaron reportedly logged his personal exercise routine on a web site called "Daily Mile." He bragged about swimming, running and biking and even wrote that he taught a spin class.

Well, once WITI started to expose him, seems this so-called disabled firefighter then disabled the web sites that were tracking his exercise activity. His daily mile account according to the station is now closed.

I don't know about you, but this weekend, I plan to honor the real firefighters, those who risked their lives on 9/11. Those who ran into a burning building to save people they didn't even know.

But today, I'm calling out Aaron Marjella. It's time for you to face the music.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Let's check in now with Paul Steinhauser. Paul, I guess you have a little preview of the tonight's debate for us. It's pretty important for Rick Perry.

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Sure is. Eight people on the stage tonight at the Reagan Library, the presidential library in California. It will be right for Rick Perry. He's got more on the line than anybody else and the most to lose.

He just jumped into the race for the White House less than a month ago, but he's now the front-runner in every poll. So there you go, they'll be gunning for him. He hasn't had a lot of experience lately debating so all eyes on Rick Perry.

Let's also talk about Rudy Giuliani, the former New York City mayor who made a bid for the Republican nomination four years ago. Randi, you know, he's been flirting with a run again this time around.

But in comments yesterday at the National Press Club here in D.C., he sure sounded like he wasn't running. He said it would be difficult for me to be nominated. Here's what else he said. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUDY GIULIANI, FORMER NEW YORK MAYOR: I think we're truly desperate that then I may run, which is the way I got elected mayor of New York City. Do you know what my slogan was? You can't do any worse.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STEINHAUSER: A little humor from Rudy Giuliani. You can hear more from him. Tonight, he's on Piers Morgan at 9:00 Eastern right here on CNN. Randi --

KAYE: It is nice to see that he has a sense of humor about that. Paul, thank you very much. Thank you for watching. That will do it for me. Brooke Baldwin picks it up from here. Hi, Brooke.