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Manhunt Continues in Oklahoma; All Missing Now Accounted for in Virginia Beach Jet Crash; Interview with Martha Burke; How to Get That Job

Aired April 07, 2012 - 12:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: A lot more on what Randi has been telling you about all morning, with this manhunt taking place in Oklahoma. Police are looking for a lone gunman in Tulsa. Three people were shot and killed and two injured. Investigators say it could be a hate crime.

All the victims are African-American and the suspected shooter is white. Tulsa Police Captain Jonathan Brooks is on the phone now from Tulsa.

So, Captain Brooks, give me an idea how you're concentrating this search.

TULSA POLICE CAPTAIN JONATHAN BROOKS: Good morning, Fred. Well, it's been a long 30 hours for us. A shooting of this nature is a little unusual for Tulsa, Oklahoma. We have organized, several agencies have become involved. We have a lot of officers dedicated to this.

We've formed a task force for this specific series of crimes, because these crimes occurred in a relatively short period of time and in really -- in a close geographical location as well. So with those things in combination, that's what's so alarming to us. And on the heels of everything else, we just need to make sure this is quickly addressed and resolved.

WHITFIELD: OK , so you said this taking place in a close geographical location. So now, tell me about the circumstances of the shooting. Are you saying all the shooting victims were shot in different locations, different circumstances? What led up to them?

BROOKS: Yes, they were all shot in different locations. Don't -- we're not absolutely sure about the circumstances as of right now. But the one thing that we do know for certain is in one of the scenes in which the victim survived, he was able to give us a little bit of information about what transpired.

And the shooter drove up to where he was at, at his residence -- they were outside -- and asked for directions. And at that point for just no apparent reason, the suspect took out a handgun and shot him and his friend there. Fortunately on this time both of those, although they are in critical condition, they did survive.

WHITFIELD: OK. Over what period of time did these shootings take place?

BROOKS: Well, just a few minutes after 1:00 am is when we received our first call, for the first shooting. And then three minutes later we had a two more shootings, in which the two survived. Then in approximately about 40 minutes, we received another call of a shooting.

Now it wasn't for several more hours, a few minutes after 8 o'clock we received another call of another shooting victim. But the investigation revealed to us though that that shooting did take place closer to the 1:00, 2 o'clock time. And due to his location, we just didn't receive a 9-1-1 call and there were no witnesses to that particular shooting.

WHITFIELD: So we saw a few different things. We saw Google Earth kind of locations showing the variation, the distance between some of these locations, and we've also seen some video. So most of these shootings, did they take place in residences involving pedestrians, people as drivers, what?

BROOKS: Yes. It appears that all the victims were just out walking or out in the yard at this hour. And this is a residential neighborhood, predominantly single-family dwellings in that area, except for the last victim; he was found at a business.

WHITFIELD: And that -- and one of the victims, you said, who was able to talk to investigators, did he ever -- did he ever see this person before? Did he recognize the alleged shooter?

BROOKS: He has not relayed that information to us. From what we're drawing from the investigation is that he did not know this person because of the way and manner in which they approached one another in the conversation.

WHITFIELD: All right. Captain Jonathan Brooks, thanks so much for taking the time -- with the Tulsa Police Department -- I know you've got your hands full. Of course, we're going to talk more about this investigation as it's unfolding, and, of course, as they continue to look for that suspected shooter. Coming up at 2 o'clock Eastern time I'll be talking live to the mayor of Tulsa as well.

All right. Three people missing after that Navy fighter jet crashed into an apartment complex over Virginia have been found. The fiery crash happened yesterday in Virginia Beach. The plane had a mechanical malfunction shortly after takeoff from a nearby base.

At least seven people were injured. Sandra Endo is live now for us out of Virginia Beach. What can you tell us about the investigation, how it all happened?

SANDRA ENDO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, incredible news today that all people have been accounted for who were living in that apartment complex that was hit by the Navy jet in yesterday's crash. And investigators are here on the scene.

But we obtained exclusive new dramatic video showing, moments after the crash, rescue workers going in, in terms of showing the search and rescue effort. This is very up close. And you can see what went on minutes after the crash. Take a look and have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Police.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Police.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Anyone in here get out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Any pets? Any pets?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pets?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ENDO: (Inaudible).

WHITFIELD: All right. You're looking at dramatic images from yesterday, that F-18 crashing into that apartment complex. We no longer have contact with our Sandra Endo. We'll try to reestablish that to get more on the investigation. But, again, all those who are unaccounted for have since been located.

All right. Meantime, we also have new details today in the Trayvon Martin case. Now a witness is talking about hearing lots of yelling and crying the night the Florida teen was killed.

According to the eyewitness, the cries came from Martin, not admitted shooter George Zimmerman, who claims he fired in self-defense. We've also altered the witness' voice here to preserve their anonymity.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was two, as I say, yells for help. And the first was one like a -- just a very, clear, loud yell for help. But it really is the second one that really always will stay with me. It was kind of almost like a yelp, it was like a devastating, desperate type of yell for help, and, you know, even to a sense it could even be -- possibly have been a cry.

The lead investigator said to me kindly, he just said, well, if it makes you feel any better, the person that was yelling for help is alive. I really thought it was the boy crying for help, but here is the lead investigator, you know, telling me that, no, it was Mr. Zimmerman.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So Zimmerman's legal team is taking issue with this witness tomorrow at 2:30 Eastern time. Zimmerman's legal team will be joining me to talk about this case further.

Meantime, a grand jury is expected to convene next week to review the case.

A week before his next parole hearing, we're seeing new pictures of notorious killer Charles Manson. Manson is now 77 years old and was convicted in the 1969 killings of actress Sharon Tate and six others by a group of his followers. Earlier this morning, Randi Kaye spoke with criminal defense attorney Randy Kravis, who said we shouldn't expect to see him back on the streets.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RANDY KRAVIS, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Charles Manson has absolutely zero chance of getting out. Because the fact of the matter is, he hasn't done anything to convince the Department of Corrections that he's been rehabilitated or that he doesn't pose a risk to society if he were let out in the general public.

In fact, he's done the opposite. He's refused to accept responsibility for what he's done. He's refused to show remorse. And even though he's acknowledged his actions in the crimes, he's maintained that he hasn't violated any of God's laws, as he says it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Manson has already been denied parole 11 times.

As the Masters golf tournament plays itself out this weekend, a controversy plays out off course. And some refuse to talk about it.

Plus what came first, the chicken or the egg? I'll show you why it's the chicken and how you can raise them right in your own backyard.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: It's round three today at the Masters golf tournament. But teeing off our discussion today, the Augusta National Golf Club's admission policy. The club is male only and it usually gives membership to the CEO of its biggest corporate sponsors.

Well, not this year. The head of IBM, Virginia Rometty, was not offered membership in the club. And here is what Billy Payne, the head of Augusta, had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILLY PAYNE, AUGUSTA NATIONAL GOLF CLUB: All issues of membership are now and have been historically subject to the private deliberations of the members. And that statement remains accurate and remains my statement.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Ten years ago, Martha Burk held a protest outside the Masters, demanding the club change its membership policy. She's the former chair of the National Council of Women's Organization and the author of "Your Voice, Your Vote: The Savvy Women's Guide to Power, Politics and the Need We Change (sic)." She joins us from Albuquerque, New Mexico. Martha, good to see you.

MARTHA BURK, LPGA CHAMPION: Thank you. Good to be here.

WHITFIELD: So what are your thoughts about the male-only membership this go-round, even though we just heard from Billy Payne and he says what remains will continue?

BURK: Well, we've heard from Billy Payne. But strangely enough, we haven't heard from IBM.

WHITFIELD: Right.

BURK: And by letting the club do this, IBM is sanctioning that policy. And I think it's undermining their new CEO, Virginia Rometty, who is a very capable woman. It's making it look like the company is OK with this discrimination. It's a very bad statement to make.

WHITFIELD: So do you think -- your feeling is we should be hearing from her?

BURK: No. I think we should be hearing from IBM's board of directors. And they should be stepping up to say our CEO is now female. She is certainly equal to any male CEO we've had in the past. And if you, Augusta National, want our sponsorship dollars, we want respect for our new CEO. I don't think it needs to be put on her.

WHITFIELD: So she apparently golfs sparingly, but what if she doesn't want membership?

BURK: That's besides the point in terms of the rightness or, in this case, wrongness of the policy. Even if she doesn't want to be a member, it doesn't change the fact she couldn't be a member if she did want to. And that's really the crux of it.

She is being treated differently with IBM's collusion than the male CEOs have been treated in the past. That is the crux of the matter. They need to step up. The chair of their board, Samuel Palmisano, has been a member of the club for years. IBM is pouring a lot of dollars into this tournament. That ought to buy a little respect.

WHITFIELD: So what about others that have been known sponsors of the Masters, AT&T, as well as ExxonMobil, do you think they should be held to the same standard? Or do you believe that they should be making a statement, just as you believe IBM should be making a statement?

BURK: I think they all should be. Back in 2003, when we did mount the protest, none of the sponsors underwrote the tournament that year or the next year. And IBM was the only sponsor to return. They had to get new sponsors for the other two slots because Coca-Cola and the third sponsor, which I've frankly forgotten, never returned to sponsorship.

I have asked ExxonMobil, I have asked AT&T to reconsider this policy because, again, it's telling their employees, their female customers, employees, and the men that care about them, we think this policy is OK. A little discrimination never hurt. If it were race, I think they would not be making this statement. WHITFIELD: Martha Burk, thanks so much for your time, joining us from Albuquerque, New Mexico.

And in a few minutes I'll talk to our legal experts today about what legal road can be taken, if any, to challenge Augusta's admission policy.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

Unemployment claims hit a four-year low last week. And the unemployment rate fell to 8.2 percent in March. But even with that, only 120,000 jobs were added to the economy. So how do you get hired? Senior business correspondent Christine Romans tells us in this week's "Smart is the New Rich."

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Jobs, jobs, jobs. The private sector has been adding them now for 25 straight months. So who is getting hired? Baby boomers for one. Since the start of the Great Recession, employment for Americans age 55 and older is up by 3.9 million.

Things are looking better, too, for new college graduates. The National Association of Colleges and Employers says starting salaries are up 4.5 percent from last year and more grads are expected to be hired this year than last year.

KEN ROGOFF, PROFESSOR, HARVARD UNIVERSITY: I think the glass is half full for 2012. I think things are definitely a little better than in 2011. I would rather be looking for a job this year.

ROMANS: Here are a couple of things can you do to improve your chances of getting hired. Don't sabotage those chances with an unsuitable social media profile. Google yourself to see what's there.

Join professional sites like LinkedIn and network offline, too. If you applied for a job months ago and haven't heard back, it's time to check in again. Companies are hiring. Most importantly, don't blame other people. Work on yourself.

STEDMAN GRAHAM, AUTHOR: If you can begin to source your talents and your skills, which is -- which I call -- it's a development issue, in a world where only the strong survive -- it's not about weakness, it's about strength. Focus on what you can do, not on what you can't do.

ROMANS: And don't forget, your job market is a job market of one. The only job statistic that matters to you is whether or not you are employed. For "Smart is the New Rich," I'm Christine Romans.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: A Denver police officer who admits to driving drunk in -- at speeds in excess of 140 miles an hour now wants his job back. Should he got another shot? I will talk about it with our legal experts right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) WHITFIELD: All right. More now on the Augusta National Golf Club, getting heat for its men-only membership policy. But can the decades- old policy be legally challenged? Let's bring in our legal expert, Avery Friedman, a civil rights attorney and law professor, joining us from Cleveland. Good to see you.

AVERY FRIEDMAN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Hi, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And Holly Hughes, a criminal defense attorney and a former prosecutor, joining us from Atlanta.

Good to see you, Holly, in for our regular, Richard Herman, who's enjoying this Easter and Passover weekend away from us. So we are going to hold down the fort. Good to see you both.

HOLLY HUGHES, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right. So, Avery, you first. You know, so how is Augusta National able to continue on with its men-only policy?

FRIEDMAN: Well, because Georgia -- neither Georgia nor the Congress is in active legislation that bars sex bias in club membership. There are states throughout our country that have prohibited this sort of behavior. And the reality is that if women are really going to achieve successful, high corporate success, they need access to these clubs.

And the failure of the Congress and the failure of the legislature in Georgia has prohibited women. I must say, Fredricka, I have so much respect for Martha Burk and her economic approach. And she's achieved early success. But unless either the legislature or the Congress does something about it, it's going to hurt women in the long run if they're going to aspire to high corporate success.

WHITFIELD: All right. So then, you know, simply put then, Holly, you know, If you don't have an act of Congress, if you don't have the state legislature involved, and if you're talking about a private organization, they can have men only, women only, blacks only, whites only, Hispanics only, Korean only, any of the above, because it's a private organization? Is it simple as that?

HUGHES: It is that basic. Yes, they can -- and let's call it what it is, Fred, discriminate. OK? All the groups you just listed, when you exclude any group, based on those criteria, that's just flat-out discrimination. But because our Constitution, whether it be the federal Constitution or the state constitution, that protects us against governmental discrimination.

FRIEDMAN: That's right.

HUGHES: And because this is a privately held organization, it's a business, essentially. And a business can do whatever they want. This is not the government interfering and discriminating.

Now, the government does the power, the Supreme Court said. If the state wants to legislate and say, by the way, in our state, in Georgia, for instance, you can't do that anymore, that's OK. But so far those steps haven't been taken.

WHITFIELD: All right. But if this private organization were to receive any kind of public funding, you know, Avery, and Holly, then that's where things would be different. And as far as we know, Augusta is not receiving any? Avery?

FRIEDMAN: Well, that's right. That's right. That's exactly right. If there were governmental support, and we'll talk about that in the Arpaio case coming up, then it would be a little bit different. I'm in total accord. The absence of a law, the Constitution permits Augusta to get away with it.

WHITFIELD: OK. All right. Let's move on to Arizona's Joe Arpaio, a sheriff there, who is quite notable. We know the U.S. Justice Department has also been pursuing him. Well, the Justice Department says that he is carrying out, in their words, quote, "systemic bias policing." And so, Avery, you know, there has been, I guess, a juncture in this case. What's taking place?

FRIEDMAN: Well, the sheriff in Maricopa County had a chance to resolve it. I've been working in prosecutions with the Civil Rights Division, Department of Justice for 40 years. They got this guy. The fact is that Arpaio is a malignancy in our system of justice. In fact, if he weren't so malignant, the guy would be a cartoon.

But remember what we're talking about today. This is the beginning of the end of Arpaio. He may have to order his last set of pink underwear for the prisoners, but they finally got him, 400 interviews, Department of Justice will prevail in the U.S. District Court.

WHITFIELD: OK, because, Holly --

(CROSSTALK)

FRIEDMAN: (Inaudible).

WHITFIELD: -- some talks were broken off. And is that the indicator that this is the end, as Avery put it, for Sheriff Arpaio?

HUGHES: Well, yes, because he was given the opportunity -- think of it this way. When a criminal has an attorney and they are charged with something, that attorney can go to the state and say let's enter into plea negotiations. Let's talk about a way to amicably resolve this.

That's what's happening here. They went to him and they said, all right, let's sit down at the table. Let's address these grievances and figure out how it is we are going to make sure everybody is treated properly and is constitutionally protected.

And at that point in time, Arpaio's camp said, we're not going to talk about it anymore. Basically what they are saying is game on. Go ahead and take us to court, see what you can accomplish.

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: It sounds as though the Arpaio camp is very confident then --

FRIEDMAN: Let's go.

WHITFIELD: -- that the Justice Department won't have anything because, you know, to both of you, his argument has been he's being targeted because he's a Republican, and this Republican is being targeted by this Democratic administration.

FRIEDMAN: Yes, except for one problem, the investigation in the Civil Rights Division started under the Bush administration. Fredricka, he's not being targeted because he's a Republican. He's being targeted because he's a reptilian. They have got this guy dead bang. He's going up in flames. So he has one more chance by the 14th to wrap it up. That's it. If not, he'll be defended in federal court.

WHITFIELD: All right. You see it that way, too, Holly? Real quick?

HUGHES: I do. And (inaudible), Fred, because they can track his numbers, they can prove discrimination based on evidence.

FRIEDMAN: Exactly right.

HUGHES: This isn't character assassination. This is we're pulling the arrest records. How many times have you stopped, for instance, Hispanic drivers versus white drivers? That's empirical evidence. That's what they are going to use to nail him, Fred.

FRIEDMAN: OK. All right. Now let's move to a Denver police officer. This is very interesting because, you know, last year he was acquitted by a jury for pulling a gun on a McDonald's employee because the food order took too long.

And then he was caught driving 143 miles per hour while driving over the legal alcohol limit. He got five days in jail and was fined $300 and he was discharged from the force.

But Holly, he says aside from all that, I want my job back and I should be able to get my job back. On what grounds? What would be his argument?

HUGHES: OK. His argument is that because the officer wrote him up, the state trooper wrote him up as driving 143 in a 55 that it wasn't just a simple -- these are his words -- "drunk driving case," which would have allowed him to retain his job.

The fact that he's making this argument, Fred, tells me his judgment is not so great. I don't want this man armed and given a badge out on our streets, especially given the incident where he pulled a gun on a McDonald's worker because his food wasn't coming fast enough.

WHITFIELD: But Avery, Darra Curtisander (ph) says he's been doing community service and that should account for something?

FRIEDMAN: Yes, well, that's because the judge ordered him to do community service. I mean, you know what's amazing to me, how did this guy get back on the force after he was charged with, you know, felony menacing --

WHITFIELD: Because he was acquitted.

FRIEDMAN: -- and weapons. Well, yes, beyond a reasonable doubt. But that's not the standard for public employment. He should have never been back on the force. But you know what, guys like that screw up, 143 miles an hour on a dark road, not lit up, with no asphalt shoulders. I see absolutely -- he might hold the lettuce, hold the pickle but don't hold the hope. He's not going back to work.

(LAUGHTER)

WHITFIELD: Oh, you kill me. All right. Thanks so much.

All right. So Avery, Holly, we're going to see you again in a moment, about 20 minutes or so from now. And we're going to talk about some other interesting cases, including a high school student who says I want to go to the prom. And my date is going to be a porn star. But now the school district says no. So we're going to talk about what kind of rights to that free judgment are being challenged.

And then raising chickens, well, it's no longer a country thing. Feathers are flying. City slickers are doing it, too. Don't adjust your set. Yes, that is a chicken. I know at first glance, it's kind of hard to tell which is the front end. Not on that one but the other one. All right. Why the phenomenon is taking wing.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. This holiday weekend parts of Texas are dealing with the threat of strong and potentially dangerous storms again. Reynolds Wolf in the Weather Center with more on this.

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: You're right about that, Fredricka, and right now, north of Texas, back into the central plains, we're already beginning to see some of this rough weather get under way.

Not severe storms as of yet, but certainly seeing some heavy rainfall now moving east of Kansas City, southward to Wichita and Kansas and, of course, right north of Oklahoma City, not far from Stillwater, as we speak.

Now what we're going to be seeing as we make it into the afternoon is more of the shower activity, more of the storms, potential for damaging winds, even large hail, in portions of Texas and back in Oklahoma.

Here is the big catalyst, it's going to be this frontal boundary sweeping to the east and southeast, interacting with all the moisture that's been coming in from the Gulf of Mexico. You've got more of a south breeze this direction. So when you have these contrasting air masses, that's when you can see things pop up.

I know we mentioned the winds and the hail but you can't rule out the possibility of an isolated tornado also. So it could be a very active afternoon. So that's your big atmospheric setup from the center of the U.S. But both coasts look pretty good. The East Coast, West Coast, even the Gulf Coast looks pretty nice for the most part, but it will be the central plains where we have the issues.

Plenty of wind in the northern plains and along parts of the Eastern Seaboard, you can expect quite a bit of wind also.

High temperatures for the east, Washington, D.C. with 60 degrees, 58 your high expected in New York, 50 over Boston, 73 in Atlanta, 80 degrees in Tampa, 64 in Denver, 63 ins Salt Lake City, Dallas with 82 and 60s in Seattle, Portland and San Francisco, 79 for Los Angeles.

Now in terms of travel, I know many of you are going to be hopping around the country. Hop -- get it, a little bit of a tie-in for Easter, there you go. Take a look at Miami and Orlando, you've got wind and showers that may keep you grounded for a bit.

Oklahoma City, storms, might even want to throw Dallas on that. There you go, with those afternoon storms. Minneapolis, showers mostly tapering off by midday. Certainly they're heavy during the morning hours. But again in Atlanta, things picture perfect.

Take a look at this last shot that we have over Centennial Park. A beautiful day, mix of sun and clouds, same conditions expected for the Masters. Fredricka, should be great all the way through Monday. Monday about a 20 percent chance of showers out by Augusta National.

WHITFIELD: A little cooler than usual but still pretty.

WOLF: No complaints there.

WHITFIELD: Perfect. All right. Thank you so much, Reynolds.

All right. Ray Charles' estate challenged by his own kids.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

WHITFIELD: What some of his children want may hit a sour note with you. We've got details next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The feud between Current TV and fired host Keith Olbermann is getting pretty ugly. The cable network is now countersuing Olbermann. In its filing, it calls the fired host "arrogant and immature." Olbermann sued the network for $70 million for breach of contract.

But Current TV says it doesn't have to, quote, "pay a dime" because he was, quote, "paid handsomely for showing up sporadically and utterly failing to keep his end of the bargain." Their words. Ouch.

And the children of music legend Ray Charles are reneging on their father's agreement and they say they want more money from his royalty. We're back with our legal brief now, Avery Friedman in Cleveland, Holly Hughes in Atlanta. All right. Good to see you both again. So before Ray Charles death he made an agreement and said each of my 12 children would get $500,000. Well, now seven of the kids, four daughters and three sons, are challenging that, saying they want to own 51 percent of his songs and get even more.

So I wonder, Avery, will this case kind of hit the road, Jack?

FRIEDMAN: Oh, nice one, Fredricka. That's great. Yes, that was one of 51 songs they are gunning for ownership of. The problem that the kids have is that there are two arguments they are making. Number one, they are saying that under a 1976 copyright law amendment, Ray had a chance to amend his rights, copyright, and he did. So that argument is out.

The second argument is that they are saying, well, he really didn't own it. Atlantic Records owned it. Well, if that's true, then Atlantic Records has the right, and they are suing the wrong party. They are suing the foundation. So on both claims, Fredricka, I think, you know, the judge is going to say hit the road, Jack. You're exactly right. I don't think the case is going anywhere.

WHITFIELD: So, Holly, if a family is contesting an estate -- and we're talking many years after the fact -- you know, are -- is this family kind of going about it in the right way, if they feel that they have merit in which to do so?

HUGHES: No. What we're looking at, Fred, is their money has run out. And so now they are just going back and, quite frankly, being greedy. Here is the thing. They signed waivers. When Ray Charles, who, quite frankly, didn't have to give them a dime, legally speaking, he didn't have to give them anything.

He calls the whole crew together, he gathers as many of the children -- you know, two were in the jail at the time -- but he gets the other 10 together and he says, if you sign this waiver, I'm going to give you -- that's half a million dollars, Fred, $500,000 each, when they didn't necessarily have to get anything. So they signed away the rights.

They said, yes, we want that big fat paycheck today and we'll waive anything in the future. And ultimately what a court looks at is what is the intent of the deceased.

Ray Charles took very deliberate steps, he got them all together, he had waivers drawn up. He came up with a financial amount to give to each child. And then he also said the bulk of the estate is going to charity. He made plans for that additional money. This wasn't some addled old man, who didn't know what he was doing and then they could argue --

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: Yes, he wasn't -- he wasn't incapacitated, he was of sound mind and that's what would be examined.

HUGHES: Right. And the court is going to look at the intent of the deceased, what did Ray Charles intend to do with these bequeathments. And what he intended to do was support the charities that got the bulk of the estate.

FRIEDMAN: By the way, the inductions to the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame start next week here. And Ray Charles, along with Chuck Berry and others were two of the first inductees. So it's really a shame the lawsuit is going on. But believe me, it will be gone. It's finished.

WHITFIELD: All right. OK. It will be hitting the road, Jack.

All right. So now, this one -- maybe people saw this argument coming, but here we go. We're talking about a Minnesota high school senior, who actually invited, as his date, to the prom a porn star. And his mom actually said no problem. That's OK. But apparently now the school has stepped in -- Tartan High School in Minnesota, which said, no, no, you can't do that.

Can a school or school district, Holly, refuse to approve, I guess, someone's date to a prom?

HUGHES: Only if there's already a policy in place. They would have to produce a written policy to this young man and his mother and say, based on our rules and regulations that you were aware of before you start attending, you cannot bring this person.

But it's my understanding in reviewing the facts and reviewing current school policy they have no such leg to stand on. There's no reason to deny him. Go ahead, Avery, jump in.

FRIEDMAN: Yes, I mean, very simply, not only must there be a policy -- Holly is right in that respect. But the policy must be geared to avoiding the disruption of the educational process. And I'm in accord. The school district has to pass a policy -- I mean, I would imagine, Fredricka, when your son gets old enough, I don't know that you'll give permission to let him take a porn star to the prom.

But it seems to me that it would make sense --

FRIEDMAN: I guess the mom ought to be flattered that he at least asked her permission, though. You know, he could have just done it.

(CROSSTALK)

FRIEDMAN: I don't know what kind of mom this is, but, you know, whatever. But I'm in accord. I think it would be unconstitutional to bar him. I wouldn't represent him, but I think he's got a legal argument, he's got a constitutional argument and I think he's going to prevail.

WHITFIELD: If it comes to that. All right. Avery, Holly, thanks so much. Good to see both of you. All have a happy Easter and Passover weekend.

HUGHES: You, too, Fred, thank you.

FRIEDMAN: Same to you. All the best. WHITFIELD: Oh, (inaudible) before you go away, though, there is a follow-up. And, Avery, you might remember this.

Remember that big controversy after a son of the late Senator F. Robert Kennedy (sic) tried to take his infant son from the maternity ward back in January? Well, a New York's child protection agency says there is no evidence the baby was abused or mistreated.

So Douglas Kennedy still faces the child endangerment charge plus harassment charges after that scuffle with the nurses. Everyone remembers seeing that and hearing those details. They tried to stop him from taking the son outside. So there you go.

And then this case closed in New Orleans, five former police officers get prison terms ranging from six to 65 years for the shootings of unarmed civilians in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The ex- officers were convicted last August on a combined 25 counts of civil rights violations.

The shootings happened on the Danziger Bridge six days after the hurricane tore through that city. Four of the officers were convicted of opening fire on unarmed people trying to cross the bridge, killing two men and wounding four other civilians.

All right. Just want to update you on those cases. And again, Holly and Avery, thanks so much. Have a great weekend.

And then hot off the political ticker, President Obama's campaign team was quick to jump on a report about Mitt Romney limiting certain disclosures of his financial investments, tweeting, quote, "What's he hiding?" Mitt Romney's people, of course, shot back, calling it a distraction.

The chair of Newt Gingrich's big super PAC pledged to continue to support him as long as he stays in the race. Gingrich has said that he will stay in the race and continue to try to collect delegates for the Republican convention this summer in Tampa. He's running a distant third to Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum.

And this program note, join me every Sunday afternoon 4 o'clock Eastern time for a special hour dedicated to the presidential contenders in this 2012 election.

All right. Perhaps you've pondered this and thought about whether it's worth your while. You want to raise chickens? And you don't actually need a farm in which to do so. In fact, more city slickers are getting in on the idea.

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WHITFIELD: All right. Want to take you straight to Virginia Beach now for an update after that F-18 crash into an apartment building yesterday. You're looking right now at the Virginia Beach mayor, Will Sessoms, as well as the Virginia Beach Admiral John Harry (sic) of U.S. Fleet Forces there out of that location. Let's listen in.

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WILL SESSOMS, VIRGINIA BEACH MAYOR: -- in this situation work so well together. If you sit back and think about it, we had our first responders. We had our citizens. We had the state police. We had the Navy. And it goes on and on and on.

And the best thing is they all worked very well together. I speak on behalf of the city, and I cannot state it strong enough how proud I am of our citizens and our staff and professionals that have been working here now for well over 24 hours. And for that, they have done a wonderful job and I'm most grateful.

But Admiral Harvey, I thank you for taking the time to come over and evaluate the situation. And I just want you to know that we appreciate all the Navy has done for our city, our region, our commonwealth and our country on a daily basis. We're sorry you're going through this today. But please know the City of Virginia Beach is here to support the Navy, now more than ever, with what they are going through.

ADMIRAL OF U.S. FLEET FORCES JOHN HARVEY: Thank you, Mr. Mayor.

It was very important for me to get out here today and get with not only with Mayor Sessoms but all the wonderful, terrific, professional first responders from Virginia Beach fire, police, the emergency medical technicians, and be able to thank them directly for the extraordinarily superb response they provided immediately after the accident and, as the mayor said, nonstop for the last 24 hours in dealing with the aftermath of the accident.

It was also very important for me to actually put eyes on the site, see what the citizens of Virginia Beach went through, what they lost and what they have sacrificed in this accident, and express again my thanks to the mayor for the extraordinary demonstration of courage that so many of the citizens of this apartment complex showed immediately after the accident.

It was citizens that dragged our air crew to safety out of the fire zone. It was citizens that stepped up and helped move those hoses. It was citizens who evacuated the other inhabitants of the apartment complex and got that going, and saved them from the fires that went through those buildings. It was a pretty amazing display in Virginia Beach of what citizenship really means.

And it came from an awful lot of people who didn't have an awful lot. And so I stand in awe of the people here, I stand in awe of what Mayor Sessoms has delivered in terms of the support to the Navy at a very difficult time for us. And I'm very proud of this partnership. It will continue into the future.

We'll learn from this and we'll make the future better for all of us. So thank you very much, Mr. Mayor. And more importantly, thanks to the people of Virginia Beach, and the chief, the fire chief, police chief and their troops, who did so much to keep this amazing miracle going, where no one died that we know of so far in this accident.

Thank you, any questions? UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sir, can you bring us up to date for the investigation, what you know, what may have triggered this crash?

HARVEY: You know, the investigation has just got underway. And so what we've done here is controlled the site. We're now going to start moving in, now that the city has gotten the whole site under complete control, we're going to come in sort of in a parallel activity and work our way from the outside in, gathering all the parts, examining the parts.

We will take all those parts and put them into, what is it, Hangar 23 over at (inaudible) Oceana, and lay them all out and start doing a detailed examination of what we find, looking at all the tapes, listening to all the tapes. We'll get the data recorders from the aircraft. It's going to take weeks to put this all together, as you might expect.

A lot of those parts are scattered around and are very, very small. We have to examine all of them. So we'll have engine specialists come down, specialists for each part of the aircraft and then we'll go painstakingly through everything, and as well as what we saw on the tapes and come up with what happened.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is the flight data recorder recovered?

HARVEY: It has not yet been recovered.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And can you give us a little bit more detail about the pilot's experience, whether it was pilot error or (inaudible)?

HARVEY: The investigation will go through all that. What I can tell you, though, is we had a very experienced instructor pilot who was in the back seat. We had a pilot who had gone through an extraordinarily long part of the syllabus flying in the front.

I'm very, very confident in the skills and knowledge of our air crew. They hung with that aircraft till the last possible moment on ejecting, trying to recover the aircraft and get it to safety. But again, I don't want to draw any conclusions on any aspect of this until we've completely examined all the information that we're going to need.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The crew that survived this incident, how instrumental and how much will that facilitate the investigation? Will that speed it up? And what kind of things can you learn?

HARVEY: Well, the investigation is going to go at a very steady pace. So the fact that we do have the air crew in good shape, clearly, that's a critical part of this, to be able to sit down with them in a formal process, in the Mishap Board, get the -- all the facts that they have, reconstruct it in their minds and get it down as to what went on and what they can recall from it.

Pretty dramatic experience that they went through. But these are very, very skilled, very professional officers, among the best we have. And I'm very confident we'll get a very good, detailed breakdown of what occurred.

This is, you know, sadly we've had some experience with this type of investigation. I have great confidence in Admiral Branch and his team at Naval Air Forces Atlantic, and here at Oceana, we have the exact right people we need to do exactly what we need to do. We'll do it in a very measured pace. We will not rush to judgment.

We will get everything down, we'll examine it carefully, find out exactly what happened and then we'll share that information with the mayor and all the other appropriate people when we have it ready to go.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Pilots yet, have you talked to them yet? And was there anything in their actions that helped contribute to the fact that there were no victims in this case?

HARVEY: I have not, myself talked to the pilots. They didn't need any conversation with an admiral last night. They had -- the focus was on their medical care, their medical recovery. I think (inaudible) have been released now from the medical observation, so they are in pretty good shape. But there is a process you go through.

And I'm not going to parachute into it and, you know, inject myself into the investigation. We have the right people doing it at the right time. And it's important to let that process play out so we don't miss anything or rush to judgment.

But I'm -- before this accident occurred, I am extraordinarily proud of our air crew, who do this every day all around the world. They are very, very good at this. We'll find out what happened and we'll fix whatever went wrong.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible) the names of the air crew?

HARVEY: Yes, we'll be releasing those later on, yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Any idea what time, Admiral?

HARVEY: No, I do not have that right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Admiral, considering the damage was done (inaudible) the crash, are you surprised that there were no fatalities?

HARVEY: Yes, I was quite surprised, to be -- to be very honest with you. When I first --

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Pretty extraordinary, one day after that F-18 crashed into an apartment complex there in Virginia Beach. big pats on the back now, the combined efforts between the civilian and the military investigators there and first responders.

Amazingly, seven people were injured, including the two pilots, one was a student pilot, the other was an experienced instructor. But you heard right there from the admiral that the pilots have since been treated and released.

And at this point they are still trying to figure out what happened. Was it, indeed, a catastrophic mechanical failure on the part of that F-18? Flight data recorder still has not been recovered. And we'll have much more on that story and other items in the NEWSROOM right after this.

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WHITFIELD: Outdoor music festivals are a popular destination in the spring and summer. Rob Marciano shows you how to find where and when your favorite bands on stage in this week's "On the Go."

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ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good weather and good music makes for a great time, even when you're on the road. Finding a music festival starring your favorite band starts with a search of your playlist.

MITCH KOULOURIS, GIGATONE ENTERTAINMENT: The number of online destinations, such as Songkick, Bandsintown, Thrillcall, and what they do is they scan your music library and then will match up when these bands are coming to town.

MARCIANO: Websites JamBase.com and MetroWize.com detail upcoming festivals.

KOULOURIS: You know, when you attend a festival, there's lots of chaos going around. There's lots of people, there's just lots to do. And so there are apps that give you the latest and greatest on what's specifically happening within the festival itself.

MARCIANO: Festival apps also alert you to any schedule or lineup changes. But pace yourself, especially for the larger festivals.

KOULOURIS: They can be, you know, quite emotionally draining and physically draining. So, you know, make sure you're prepared before you go.

MARCIANO: Rocking the great outdoors -- "On the Go."

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