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American Hikers Released From Iran; President Obama, Mideast Leaders to Meet; Troy Davis Execution; Innocent Man On Death Row; Youth of the Year Award; Checking The Markets; Talk Back Question; Iraq Vet Success Story

Aired September 21, 2011 - 12:00   ET

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

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Top of the hour. I'm Suzanne Malveaux.

Want to get you up to speed.

Well, you can't see them, but Americans Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer, they are inside that white Toyota leaving prison today, freedom after two years in Iranian custody. Now, these men were turned over to the Swiss, who represent U.S. interests in Iran, after someone paid -- $1 million, rather, bail.

Well, the Americans will begin their journey home by flying from Tehran to the Persian Gulf state of Oman. They were arrested in July of 2009 while hiking along Iraq's border with Iran.

A Georgia judge is considering an emergency appeal from Troy Davis. His lawyer claims that there is new evidence. Georgia is set to execute Davis in seven hours for killing a police officer back in 1989. No DNA evidence tied Davis to the crime. Most witnesses who testified against him have now recanted.

Despite that, members of the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles refused today to reconsider the decision to deny clemency.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REV. RAPHAEL G. WARNOCK, EBENEZER BAPTIST CHURCH: This is Jim Crow in a new era. There's just too much doubt for this execution to continue.

SPENCER LAWTON, FORMER CHATHAM COUNTRY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: It has been a game of delay throughout. The longer the delay, the more time they have to create, not doubt, not honest doubt, not real doubt, but the appearance of doubt.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Prominent figures, from former President Jimmy Carter to Pope Benedict, have asked Georgia to spare Davis' life because of doubts about his guilt.

Well, Texas is scheduled to execute Lawrence Brewer. That is happening tonight. He was one of three men convicted in the horrendous death of an African-American man in 1998. James Byrd, you may recall, was chained to a pickup truck and dragged for several miles. Well, Brewer expressed no remorse in an interview this week -- quoting here -- "I will do it all over again, to tell you the truth."

President Obama and Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu are meeting on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly. Now, they're focusing on Palestinian statehood and how to stop it.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is set to ask the U.N. to declare Palestinian -- Palestine, rather, a state, and that's supposed to happen Friday. Well, President Obama will personally press Abbas to work for statehood through negotiations with Israel when the two meet later this afternoon.

Well, in his U.N. address earlier today, the president talked about the changes that are sweeping the Middle East and North Africa.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So this has been a remarkable year. The Gadhafi regime is over. Gbagbo, Ben Ali, Mubarak are no longer in power. Osama bin Laden is gone, and the idea that change could only come through violence has been buried with him.

Something's happening in our world. The way things have been is not the way that they will be.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(CHANTING)

MALVEAUX: Thousands of Palestinians poured into the streets in Ramallah today to support statehood. The West Bank city is the seat of the Palestinian government. Other towns, including Bethlehem, also held rallies.

Typhoon Roke is blasting Japan today with 100-mile-an-hour winds, buckets of rain. Seventeen inches already fallen in some places. The storm is brushing past Tokyo right now.

It will then push into an area already wrecked by the earthquake and tsunami last March. There is concern that the typhoon could spread radioactive water at the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. Four people have died in Typhoon Roke already, three others are missing.

Well, the cost of raising a child to age 18 is now up a whopping 40 percent over the last decade. Now, the Agriculture Department says the typical middle class family is going to spend $227,000 on a child, and that doesn't even include college.

The main culprit here, simply the basics. Take a look at the numbers.

Housing costs, up 31 percent. Child care, up 17 percent. Food, up 16 percent. And at the same time, the Census Bureau says mom and dad are now making less. Median household incomes, now off seven percent.

More on our top story.

After more than two years behind bars in Iran, two Americans are now coming home. Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal were arrested in July of 2009 while hiking along Iraq's border with Iran with their companion, Sarah Shourd.

Now, Shourd was later set free for medical reasons, but until this morning, Bauer and Fattal had been sitting in a prison cell facing down an eight-year sentence. Today, they are free.

Susan Candiotti, she's live in New York with the latest.

Susan, so now they've been released. Where do you believe that they go now? Where are they headed? When do they reunite with their families?

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the last word we have from Iran's state news agency is that they are wheels up, they are on their way to Oman, where their families are known to be anxiously awaiting what is sure to be a very emotional reunion after not having seen them. Remember, only once they were allowed a visit on Mother's Day about one year after they were imprisoned.

And so, waiting for them, the families of Josh Fattal, Shane Bauer, and Sarah Shourd is also there. Remember, she is engaged to Shane Bauer.

We recall that she said when she was released, she revealed that back in January of 2010, that Shane got down on a bended knee and had fashioned an engagement ring out of a thread from a shirt that he had worn to present that to her. And so she will be there also, we are told.

We're waiting for a statement from the family at any time. Presumably, it will be when that plane touches down.

And they are being escorted by a representative of the sultan of Oman. That country enjoys, of course, a good relationship with both Iran and the United States, and has acted as an intermediary. It did the same thing when Sarah was there. And once they are there, we are told they may spend at least a couple of days before heading to the United States.

MALVEAUX: That's a very nice, romantic story there about the ring. That's really sweet.

We know that they've been released, that they'll be reuniting with their families shortly. Do we have any idea how they were actually released? Who paid that $1 million for their bail?

CANDIOTTI: Ah, that remains a mystery. It was never publicly disclosed who paid the half-million-dollar bail when Sarah Shourd was released. It is widely believed that the source and speculated that the source was someone in Oman, perhaps the sultan, but they have never again officially disclosed that.

So, it is presumed that. It is entirely possible the same thing happened this time.

And remember, that eight-year sentence was commuted. We never officially got to see what the evidence was that Iran said that they had spied on Iran and had illegally crossed the border. Sarah has always maintained that if they crossed the border, it was accidental, denied being spies, and said that they were in fact lured across the border by Iranian agents.

MALVEAUX: All right.

Susan Candiotti.

Thank you so much, Susan.

Now is your chance to "Talk Back" on one of the big stories of the day. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, the U.S., just one of 58 countries that allows the death penalty. Today's "Talk Back" question: Is it time to rethink the death penalty?

Carol Costello, she's here, getting a lot of talk right now.

Carol, you know there are a lot of countries, they look at what we do. They say that you're sophisticated, but in some ways, the death penalty, barbaric.

What do we make of this?

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, a lot of Americans are conflicted about the death penalty. Hence the question today: Should we rethink the death penalty?

Troy Davis, a convicted cop killer, will die tonight, despite this rally and despite assertions of Davis' innocence from Amnesty International, to the pope, to President Jimmy Carter. Whether you agree with them is up to you.

But Davis' case aside, American juries seem increasingly reluctant to see any inmate put to death. Since the 1990s, the number of executions in America have significantly declined from 98 executions in 1999 to just 46 last year.

That decline seems at odds with the strong feelings many Americans still have about the death penalty. Witness the Republican debate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIAN WILLIAMS, MODERATOR: Your state has executed 234 death row inmates, more than any other governor in modern times.

(APPLAUSE)

WILLIAMS: Have you struggled to sleep at night with the idea that any one of those might have been innocent?

GOV. RICK PERRY (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: No, sir, I've never struggled with that at all. I think Americans understand justice.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: That's Texas, but 16 other states do not have the death penalty.

As for why juries seem loath now to impose a death sentence, that's unclear, but maybe it's because more than 130 people have been released from death row with evidence of their innocence since 1973. Many juries now prefer another option: life without the possibility of parole.

So, the "Talk Back" today: Is it time to rethink the death penalty?

Facebook.com/CarolCNN. I'll read your comments later this hour.

MALVEAUX: OK. Thank you, Carol.

Here's a rundown of some of the stories that we are covering over the next hour.

First, President Obama talked about everything from Israel, to the Arab Spring, the financial crisis. That, in his speech to the United Nations earlier today. I'm going to talk with David Gergen about what all that means.

And a popular online poker site is accused of running a multimillion-dollar Ponzi scheme.

Then, an innocent man spends 12 years on death row. We're going to talk to him about tonight's planned execution of Troy Davis.

And actor, director Ron Howard joins me to talk about the Youth of the Year Award just named by the Boys and Girls Club.

And later, why some drivers are upset about OnStar's tracking methods.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Here's your chance to "Choose the News." Text "22360" for the story you would like to see.

Text "1" for "Social Media Campaigns." All right, so just forget about kissing the babies, shaking hands, all that intense debate. Some candidates in China are focusing on social media to get their message across to millions of people at once.

Text "2" for "Secret Sauce." Yes. He went from serving our country to selling his own secret sauce. Meet an Iraq War vet who beat the odds and is teaming up with a national grocery store chain to achieve his business dream.

And text "3" for "Animal Kitchen." Yes. So what's the recipe to feed lions, tigers, bears at the Washington, D.C., Zoo? A behind-the- scenes look at a very different kind of kitchen that feeds 3,000 animals.

So you can vote by texting "22360." Text "1" for "Social Media Campaigns"; "2" for "Secret Sauce"; or "3" for "Animal Kitchen."

The winning story is going to air later this hour.

Well, some big speakers taking a stand on the world stage this week at the 66th United Nations General Assembly. That is happening in New York.

Everything from the teetering global markets, future of Libya, famine in Somalia, all those things on the table. But after a year of seismic changes, big decisions, the power plays could really be happening behind closed doors. Yes, those side meetings.

President Obama has been meeting privately with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He's going to be meeting with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas. That's going to happen separately later today.

Abbas is expected to demand statehood this Friday in front of the General Assembly. That is something that neither the U.S. or Israel wants to see happen without having a hand in the negotiations. So the president made his own address to the General Assembly about all that this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: I know that many are frustrated by the lack of progress. I assure you, so am I. But the question isn't the goal that we seek. The question is, how do we reach that goal? And I am convinced that there is no shortcut to the end of a conflict that has endured for decades.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: I want to bring in CNN Senior Political Analyst David Gergen to talk about all this.

David, thanks for joining us.

First of all, you take a look at President Obama and the situation he's in right now. Does it look like he's in a lose-lose position? Can he satisfy anyone here?

DAVID GERGEN, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: It's hard. It's very hard, Suzanne. We'll have to wait and see what happens in these private talks, as you say.

But what we saw today, out front, was a very different President Obama than we've normally seen on Middle Eastern speeches. You know, starting with Cairo, he's given a series of speeches promising transformative changes in the Middle East, not only in the U.S. relationship with the Arab world, but in the relationship between Israel and the Palestinians.

He's been very frustrated. He was a very frustrated president today. And he's no longer promising things.

He's now saying, hey, peace is tough, it's hard. That was a main theme today, peace is hard. He said it repeatedly during the speech.

MALVEAUX: And David, how does he show that he's a strong supporter of Israel without alienating our Arab allies, those who are looking to him for leadership and guidance, and moving forward in Palestinian/Israeli negotiations?

GERGEN: Well, it is a tightrope. And he's -- I think he walks it reasonably well. Today he showed -- frankly, he showed a lot of sympathy and empathy for both sides, explaining the perspective of the Palestinians, as well as the Israelis.

Earlier today on CNN, the comments were made that he seemed to be much more sympathetic with the Israelis than he has been in the past. He really -- he went much more deeply into that, and it looked like it might be a little bit of a bow to Jewish voters in 2012. But he walked the tightrope.

I thought the other thing, Suzanne, which was notable about the speech was that the president seemed to be trying to defuse a sense of crisis around this Palestinian effort to get statehood and to not build this up. He didn't -- this was a very lofty speech in which he intentionally, I think, went out of his way not to make waves, not to create big headlines.

MALVEAUX: And David, already we've seen Obama's Republican opponents going after him over this issue and how he's performed in New York. You had Texas Governor Rick Perry call his policy towards Israel naive. We had Mitt Romney accusing President Obama of throwing the Israelis under the bus.

To what extent do we think that Obama risks losing the Jewish vote here in 2012 by trying to walk this tightrope?

GERGEN: Well, certainly the Republicans see an opening. And they see an opening in two ways.

By attacking Obama for being too tough on Israel, they are appealing to the more conservative elements in the Jewish community, trying to split the Jewish vote, if you would. And they think they saw how much that would benefit them in an off election in New York here just a few days ago, when a district which is heavily Jewish went for a Republican for the first time since 1923. So they see an opening there.

But there's also an interesting -- Suzanne, by making these kind of statements, Rick Perry and, to a lesser extent, Mitt Romney, also played to the Evangelical community, here in this community. The Evangelical community, as you know, is very, very supportive of Israel for reasons arising out of the bible. And Rick Perry I think is -- he' playing to the Jewish vote, but yes, the Evangelical vote is extremely important to him, too.

MALVEAUX: All right, David. Thank you so much.

David Gergen.

Appreciate it.

GERGEN: Thank you.

MALVEAUX: Well, there are dozens of world leaders who are going to speak at the General Assembly. And having seen many of these, covering many of these in the past, if the past is any guide, this event could be filled with totally unpredictable moments.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX (voice-over): It's a meeting of minds and personalities. Since its founding in 1945, the United Nations has always been center stage for global grandstanding.

Who could forget former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's 2009 appearance? Just the question of where to put the guy was the center of controversy.

Gadhafi wanted to set up his tent and stay there instead of at a hotel. Ultimately, Donald Trump let him set up camp on his property in New Jersey.

When it was his turn to talk, he held his audience hostage to a rambling hour and 36 minute speech, touching on everything from swine flu to the assassinations of John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King.

MOAMMAR GADHAFI, LIBYAN LEADER (through translator): Wrong. This should not be called the Security Council. It should be called the "Terror Council."

MALVEAUX: And Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad sparked a walkout at the U.N. by questioning the Holocaust and implying that 9/11 was an inside job.

PRES. MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD, IRAN (through translator): It is proposed that the United Nations set up an independent fact-finding group for the event of September 11th.

MALVEAUX: And Venezuela's Hugo Chavez once used the stage to take aim at the leader of the free world, calling President George W. Bush "The Devil."

PRES. HUGO CHAVEZ, VENEZUELA (through translator): Today the devil came here, right here. Right here. And it smells of sulfur still today.

MALVEAUX: One thing is for certain, whenever delegates from 193 different nations come together, there's sure to be political theater and some drama.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: So the big topics at this week's 66th meeting of the U.N. General Assembly, the global economic turmoil, statehood for Palestinians, and famine in Somalia.

We are going to get a chance also to talk to the prosecutor in the Troy Davis case. That is, of course, the case that we have been following, the man who is due to be executed by 7:00 this evening.

We're going to talk to the prosecution in the case. Obviously, there has been a lot of controversy around this. We'll have that after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Attorneys for Troy Davis filed an appeal to try to block his execution scheduled for less than seven hours from now. They filed a motion based on ballistics evidence and what they say is false testimony. But the man who prosecuted the case stands by the verdict.

Former Chatham County prosecutor Spencer Lawton joins us on the phone.

Thanks for joining us, first of all.

This filing today, they questioned the expertise of ballistics expert Roger Barrian (ph). The filing says that he was discredited, that the ballistics do now -- do not actually put Davis on the scene.

Do you disagree?

SPENCER LAWTON, FMR. CHATHAM COUNTY PROSECUTOR: Of course I disagree. It's not true. The ballistics evidence was entered -- it was clear. It was unambiguous. It was put in evidence at the trial.

MALVEAUX: Well, how so? Tell us how it was clear. They said that it was discredited. Can you explain?

LAWTON: Yes, yes, yes. Well, yes, I'm on my way to doing that.

What I'm telling you is that it was presented at trial. It was unambiguous and clear at the time. It was apparently also convincing.

A unanimous jury of, I believe, five blacks and seven whites were persuaded by it. And what it showed, according to a test of the shell casings -- that's the little brass part of a bullet cartridge -- they both were fired from the same gun, the casings recovered at the scene of a prior shooting of which Troy Davis was convicted.

And the casings recovered from the scene of the murder of Officer MacPhail were fired from the same gun. And there's no question that that gun was used by Troy Davis in the earlier shooting. The so-called new evidence -- and one wonders, I would suggest, why we are only now hearing from this new alleged expert about alleged new evidence.

MALVEAUX: Well, if there is new evidence --

LAWTON: I'm sorry. I'm sorry, did I --

MALVEAUX: Yes, I'm sorry. I just wanted to follow up.

If there is new evidence, if there's any possibility of new evidence that suggests some other information, why not actually take a look at that? Do you think that's something that would be worth looking at?

LAWTON: There is no new -- I'm telling you -- you asked me a question, and I've been -- I'm on my way -- I'm sorry if I'm taking too long with it, but I'm attempting to answer you.

MALVEAUX: Sure. I appreciate that.

LAWTON: The new ballistics evidence, as I understand it, is derived from a report by some expert who has not examined any of the ballistic evidence, hasn't examined the bullets or the shell casings. What he has examined, I don't know. It may be that he has read the reports and disagrees with them, but what I am told authoritatively is that he has not examined the evidence upon which he is commenting.

MALVEAUX: OK.

LAWTON: So this, to me -- I'm -- this is not new evidence. You have got to keep in mind, this is evidence that's being presented by the same defense team that over the years procured so-called recantations which they did not rush into court with, but instead kept in their back pocket and first produced --

MALVEAUX: OK.

LAWTON: -- some eight days before the first execution was scheduled. So --

MALVEAUX: OK.

LAWTON: -- one wonders if, like that, this is just another device for a delay.

MALVEAUX: Well, let me ask you this, Mr. Lawton, about the other part of the filing here, that Davis' lawyer says that the lead police detective admits that a witness never identified Troy Davis as the shooter. That would be contrary to her testimony at trial, to her -- that being --

(CROSSTALK)

LAWTON: I can't comment on that. I have no idea about the origin of it. It may be that it's another one of the engineering projects that they have undertaken since the conviction -- or, well, actually since years after the conviction.

MALVEAUX: So you discredit that, that that's a possibility?

LAWTON: Well, I haven't got any idea. I have never heard of it before now.

And, of course, the question always is, well, why not? And I have the idea that perhaps it's a -- I won't comment. I don't know. I have no idea what the origin of a statement like that might be. I don't know it to be true.

MALVEAUX: Is it possible that -- I mean, are you saying that you believe you have all the information that is necessary in your case as prosecuting Troy Davis, even if there is perhaps new information or evidence, or information you have not heard of yet, that you would not be willing to take a look at that?

LAWTON: Well, in the first place it's not for me to take a look at it. You understand, I'm not the district attorney anymore.

MALVEAUX: Sure.

LAWTON: So it's not my judgment. But what I am saying is that from what I am told about this so-called newly-discovered evidence, it utterly lacks credibility.

So, no, I don't think that every time somebody comes up with a new fantastical idea of something that might be true or untrue, we've got to go back through a full dress review of it. Their credibility, in my opinion, is shot, and it's been shot for years.

So, no, I don't think to introduce the testimony of an expert concerning physical evidence which he has not examined simply isn't credible. It's just as incredible as everything else that they've done for these 15-odd years.

MALVEAUX: Well, let me ask you this, a final thing. And the Davis lawyers also say that there was another inmate who says that Davis confessed to him while in bars, and then that inmate says he since recanted it. He says, you know what? Davis never did confess to me. That's according to the lawyers there.

Does that not disturb you or bother you?

LAWTON: I can't -- no, it doesn't. No, it doesn't, because I don't believe anything that they say. Nothing that they have said up to date has proved to be true.

MALVEAUX: All right. Spencer Lawton, we appreciate your time. This is a very controversial case.

A lot of people who believe that Troy Davis should not be put to death this evening, but obviously there is a case here in which people disagree about the evidence or the lack thereof.

Troy Davis, he is, one thing we know for sure, running out of time. We're going to talk with a man who knows what Davis is facing. He spent more than a decade on death row before he was cleared of murder.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Lawyers for Georgia death row inmate Troy Davis are running out of time and options. Davis is scheduled to be executed less than seven hours from now at 7:00 p.m. Eastern. Supporters say there's not enough evidence for him to be put to death. Davis was convicted of killing police officer Mark MacPhail in 1989.

Well, here's how he's likely to spend his final hours. From now until 3:00 p.m., he is allowed to meet with family, friends, clergy members and his attorneys. Then he's scheduled for a routine physical exam. At 4:00 p.m. Eastern, Davis will be offered a last meal. Prison officials say he didn't request anything special. At 5:00 p.m., he's going to have a chance to record a final statement. And then one hours before the execution, Davis will be offered a sedative.

Randy Steidl spent 12 years on death row before he was exonerated. He's with us from Illinois.

And we appreciate your being here, first of all. We can't really even imagine what Troy Davis is going through now with just hours to live. A countdown clock over his head. But perhaps you can. What is that like to be on death row?

RANDY STEIDL, EXONERATED AFTER 12 YEARS ON DEATH ROW: Well, being on death row is torture. You wake up every day realizing that the state is intent on murdering you. And it's even worse when you know you're actually innocent of this murder.

MALVEAUX: You were charged with first degree murder and sentenced to death. An investigation by Illinois State Police found that you were framed by local law enforcement and prosecutors and there was no DNA evidence that linked you to the crime. What is it like --

STEIDL: Correct.

MALVEAUX: To know that you are innocent and yet to sit there uncertain of your future, of your fate?

STEIDL: Well, to know you're actually innocent and lose every state appeal that you file over a period of 12 years and then to only end up with a new sentence of life without parole was very frustrating. But I realized had I not got that sentence of life without parole, I wouldn't be here today. I would be in the same position Troy Davis faces today -- execution.

MALVEAUX: When you say death row is torture, what do you mean? What was that like? What did you experience?

STEIDL: Having spent 12 years on death row, 23 hours a day in a cage by yourself, in solitary confinement so to speak, is an issue that you have to deal with and I pray to God every day that I wouldn't lose my mind. That's the only thing that I didn't want to do is lose my mind.

After receiving a life without parole sentence, I found that to be a fate almost worse than death. I felt like five minutes on that gurney would have been early release for me. That is the feelings of an actual innocent man, that life without parole, to me, was a far harsher sentence.

At least if you give somebody life without parole, you don't risk the possibility of executing an innocent person. Give them the opportunity, give Troy Davis the opportunity that I had to present his case.

I had two alleged eyewitnesses to the crime that I -- that they say I committed. Both of these are wholly unworthy of belief. They gave false testimony. They had recanted numerous times. Troy Davis has seven witnesses to the crime and now they have all recanted. If that isn't reasonable doubt in this country, then reasonable doubt does not exist.

MALVEAUX: It looks like, from this point forward, that he will die. That he will be put to death. What do you think this says about our system of justice?

STEIDL: I believe our system of justice is intent on making someone pay, and as long as they have a body. After you've exhausted all your appeals and you have witnesses to the crime who have recanted sworn trial testimony, now this needs to be investigated. Troy Davis deserves a commutation to life without parole to let this be investigated. Either these witnesses lied at trial or they're lying now. Either way, they have lied.

MALVEAUX: Do you think our system --

STEIDL: How can you possibly sentence a man to death?

MALVEAUX: Do you think our system of justice is working? Do you think it's broken?

STEIDL: No, our system of justice hasn't worked. I'm a member of an organization called Witness To Innocence. We advocate for 138 wrongfully convicted actually innocent men and women who spent decades on death row in this country. One hundred and thirty-eight people.

MALVEAUX: If there's anything --

STEIDL: And there's 40 --

MALVEAUX: Sure. I understand. If there's anything you could say to Troy Davis' family now, what would it be?

STEIDL: I would say, fight till the last second. Don't give up the fight. I urge every American to be aware that there's a travesty of justice being portrayed in this country today in Georgia. I urge every American to phone the prison review board, phone the governor, get this execution stopped. You can release an innocent man from prison, but you cannot release him from the grave. I'm living proof of that.

MALVEAUX: Randy Steidl, thank you so much. We really appreciate your time.

STEIDL: Thank you.

MALVEAUX: Ron Howard is the director of a new public service announcement by the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. The clubs have just announced their Youth of the Year awards. We're going to speak live with Ron Howard and this year's winner.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: The Boys & Girls Clubs of America has just announced its Youth of the Year awards. They're out with a new public service announcement that's directed by Ron Howard. He's with us from Washington, along with Nicholas Foley. He's the winner of the Youth of the Year award.

Great to see you both.

Ron, I certainly respect your work as a director, but I've grown up watching you as Opey, later on "Happy Days." As we know, every kid doesn't grow up in a place like make believe Mayberry. There are a lot of challenges that kids are facing. You just cut this public service announcement for the Boys & Girls Club supporters. Tell us what you've learned. What are some of the big challenges, the biggest challenges that kids are facing?

RON HOWARD, DIRECTOR: Well, you know, I mean the statistics are shocking in this country. The number of children who are in poverty. The number of children who are not completing high school. And as a -- I think we're ninth in the world in terms of higher education. And it's -- it's frustrating as a citizen. It's very disappointing as somebody who believes in the American dream and believes in all that we're meant to aspire to.

But when you look around and you kind of say, what in the world could I possibly do? The fact of the matter is that the Boys & Girls Clubs are really addressing these threshold issues. These vital, vital, you know, fundamental issues -- educating our children, creating character, creating a place that's a safety net, but a place to really build from. And it's, you know, it's not just sports and after school activities.

MALVEAUX: Sure.

HOWARD: It's academic. It's leadership. It's really remarkable. And you hear Nick's story and the story of the other finalists and it becomes very, very clear that Boys & Girls Clubs make a difference. They simply work. So as confusing and frustrating as it is right now, supporting something like the Boys & Girls Clubs feels really good. And it did to me. And I was happy to direct the PSA.

MALVEAUX: And I want to bring in our winner here, Youth of the Year award, Nick Foley. He's -- you're from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, I understand. You've been a member of the Boys & Girls Club for 10 years now. You have an amazing story. You've overcome tremendous odds. You used to be homeless. You struggled, but you excel now in sports, music, robotics. You have a family as well. How did you do it? How did you overcome your circumstances?

NICHOLAS FOLEY, BOYS & GIRLS CLUB YOUTH OF THE YEAR: Well, like we just said, all those activities you just mentioned I'm a part of are all through the Boys & Girls Club. This provided that place. Not only do I have the one family at my house, but I have my Boys & Girls Club family, which I know is always there for me. They show me the love, the support, whenever I need it. And that's what helped me get through here and that's why great futures really do start at the Boys & Girls Clubs.

MALVEAUX: What did you appreciate the most? What did you actually do when you would go to the club?

FOLEY: Well, I'd do a little bit of everything. One of my favorite programs definitely, it's called Keystone Club, which is a team leadership group focusing on academics, career exploration and community service. We do a lot of service projects and it puts you in a position of leadership. So you're really well-known around the club and it's really nice to be not only in the club, but outside in the community to know you're having a positive effect on someone's life.

MALVEAUX: And I know there are a lot of people on the ground who have been a part of your life, very supportive, but what do you think of hanging out with these celebrities like Ron Howard and all those folks that are in this PSA?

FOLEY: This week's been crazy. It's been such a -- especially last night. We met them all for the first time. Ron Howard, Denzel, LeBron James, Ashanti. Just -- it's just been -- it's a little bit of a shocking experience. I don't know if it's completely hit me, this whole thing, but it's been a great time.

HOWARD: And I'll tell you, doing the PSA was amazing because it was really a reunion of all these people whose lives have been so positively affected.

FOLEY: Right.

HOWARD: And it's an amazing array of people. And it was, you know, it was fun to capture on film.

MALVEAUX: All right. Well, we wish you the very best. And, yes, Nick, to you, too, I understand you're planning on going to Penn State. You're going to be majoring in engineering. So, all the best to you. Very successful. We love your story. And, Ron, thanks for the good work you do.

HOWARD: Thank you.

FOLEY: Thank you.

MALVEAUX: We're going to take a quick check of the markets. That, up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Have a story that's developing here. I just want to read. This is coming from our CNN senior State Department producer, Elise Lavit, reporting that out of this meeting between President Obama and the Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, he's saying he's going to deliver a letter to the United Nations Security Council seeking statehood for the Palestinians, but that he doesn't expect a response right away. He's not demanding a response right away.

This potentially is going to avert a diplomatic showdown at the United Nations among these world leaders. And what Abbas is saying is that he will go ahead and allow for the United States, the United Nations and other international bodies to weigh in on the question of Palestinian statehood in a couple of weeks. So what sounds like is happening now is that there is some negotiating, some maneuvering, political maneuvering, if you will, to avoid what could potentially be a diplomatic showdown at United Nations among world leaders over this issue of Palestinian statehood. This is the latest information. It is coming from our senior State Department producer Elise Lavit, who is reporting on the very latest of that meeting between President Obama and Abbas. We're going to have more of that later.

We're also going to be checking on the markets. I believe we've got Alison Kosik, who's got the latest on that.

Hey, Alison.

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Suzanne, we're watching stocks. So pretty much on stand-by mode. The Dow down about 57 points. What everybody's waiting on is the Federal Reserve's policy statement coming out in about an hour and a half, wrapping up that two day policy meeting once again. And it's expected that they're going to announce a plan called Operation Twist.

The Fed first used this in the 1960s. It's named after the twist, I'm talking about the dance craze that was started by Chubby Checker. And what this essentially would do is, the Fed would take its balance sheet and sell its short-term bonds, use the proceeds to buy long-term bonds. And the goal here is to keep borrowing rates lower longer. And what that would do is target mortgage rates and business loans with the hope of -- that people would refinance their mortgages and with the hope that it would encourage businesses to take out more loans, invest in expansion and spend money and ultimately, hopefully, hire more people.

So, once again, the Dow down 52 points. We're going to have more right after this break.

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MALVEAUX: You've been sounding off on our "Talk Back" question. Carol Castillo, she's here with your responses.

Hey, Carol. CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And, boy have you been sounding off and I appreciate that. The "Talk Back" question today, is it time to rethink the death penalty?

This from Mike. "Put yourself in the shoes of the victim or the family of the victim. Would you be OK with a portion of your paycheck to keep the person who murdered a family member of yours, raped you or raped your child?"

This from Tara. "We can't condemn killing by killing. As benevolent people, we should not be teaching our children that killing is acceptable, no matter what the reason is."

This from Tina. "It is definitely time to rethink the death penalty because you can't always say with certainty that you got it right. If you execute an innocent person, you can't bring them back. That's a mistake that can never be corrected."

This from Dwayne. "Where's the 600,000 bleeding hearts crying to save the cop killer when Texas is going to execute a racist later today?" Of course Dwayne is referring to Lawrence Brewer, who was convicted in the dragging death of James Byrd. He'll be put to death this week.

And this from William. "I have had a loved one murdered and the guy was convicted for the murder and sentenced to life without parole. My family was happy with that. Eye for an eye is no longer the way to go."

Please keep the conversation going, facebook.com/carolcnn. And thank you, as always, for your comments.

MALVEAUX: All right, thanks, Carol.

COSTELLO: Sure.

MALVEAUX: You told us what you'd like to see. Your "Choose The News" story just moments away.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Overeating. So maybe this has happened to you before, right? You just think you're going to eat a few potato chips when you break open the bag, but then you can stop yourself. You eat the whole thing. Or down a pint of ice cream. Well, here's a possible solution, use a different hand. A new study had people eat a bag of popcorn using their non-dominant hand. So right handed people were forced to eat the popcorn with their left hand, vice versa. Can you guess what happened? Folks who ate with their non-dominant hand ate 30 percent less. That's a good trick.

You voted. We listened. Here's your "Choose The News" winner. An Iraq war vet teaming up with a national grocery store chain to sell his secret sauce. CNN's Barbara Starr takes a look at the recipe for success.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: I'm a city girl. You've got to tell me what all this stuff is.

MIKE HANES, IRAQ WAR VETERAN: Well, this -- there's all kinds of vegetables growing over here. Right here is currly doc (ph). It's kind of sour. It's -- you can cut this raw on a salad. You can cook it.

STARR (voice-over): After serving in a Marine Corps reconnaissance unit in Iraq, Mike Hanes returned home in 2004 plagued with such severe combat stress he couldn't work. He found himself homeless.

HANES: When I came back, I really had an extremely difficult time transitioning. And I just could not interact or associate with society at all.

STARR: Then, Mike came to this far just outside San Diego. Here, fellow Marine Colin Archipley and his wife teach farming to combat veterans looking for new careers. It's much-need help. The jobless rate for Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans is 11.5 percent in today's already fragile job market. And Mike was vulnerable, says Colin.

COLIN ARCHIPLEY, ARCHIE'S ACRES FOUNDER: It was frequently that he gave us a call and said, you know, I don't think I'm going to make it today. We kind of cohered him to get him up here.

STARR: Now Mike is turning everything around. At the farm's kitchen table, a new life is mapped out.

HANES: I've got to find out if they sell it in big, big huge containers, you know.

DWIGHT DETTER, ARMY VETERAN/WHOLE FOODS BUYER: Right. All right, so what I'll do is I'll call my main distributor.

STARR: Mike is going into production with his own hot sauce called Dang (ph). Whole Foods' buyer Dwight Detter is trying to get it on his market shelves this fall. An Army veteran, Dwight felt an instant connection.

DETTER: Here's a person I want to get involved in this. And it kind of fit in with what I do, you know, for work, but gave me new opportunities to help him develop his label, his brand.

STARR: Mike says he's learned to seek support. But for combat vets, getting any job can be tough.

HANES: It's hard to find support for these veterans coming back because there's so much involved with turning that off. You know, the on switch that's been triggered when you're in combat.

STARR: And perhaps something switched on for Dwight, thinking about whether helping a young vet get ahead makes him feel like he's still serving. DETTER: That's funny. I haven't even thought of that in that way. Yes, maybe so. Maybe it's a rewarding feeling that I didn't get when I was doing it at the time. Interesting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: If you choice didn't win or you just want to check out the runners up, going to have links to them on my page at facebook.com/suzannecnn.

CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with Randi Kaye.