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John Edwards Trial Begins; Jennifer Hudson Takes the Stand; Snowstorm Rocks Northeast; Report: Social Security in Trouble?; Walmart Attempts to Clean Image after Scandal

Aired April 23, 2012 - 15:00   ET

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

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Rolling on, hour two. Welcome back. I'm Brooke Baldwin.

The trial of John Edwards has begun today. We're going to take you to Greensboro, North Carolina, here. Here he is, John Edwards arriving this morning federal court. He's charged with misuse of campaign donations to cover up an illicit affair and the pregnancy of his mistress.

And as you probably know by now, this was all happening as the former U.S. senator and former vice presidential nominee was himself running for president. The former Democratic star, wealthy trial lawyer could find himself going to prison.

Joe Johns has the story of Edwards' fall from grace.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This political soap opera started at a bar in New York City where Edwards met self- proclaimed filmmaker Rielle Hunter in early 2006.

She was quickly hired by Edwards to film Webisodes, casual online videos of the former senator. The video showed just how close Edwards and Hunter had become.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm so glad you like it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I loved it. Wait until you hear me give it live.

JOHNS: Immediately those close to Edwards suspected an affair. Behind the scenes, the government argues that Edwards was orchestrating a massive cover up.

Loyal and wealthy donors paid for his pregnant mistress to relocate and personal aide, Andrew Young, would claim paternity. In the fall of 2007, a tabloid published a story on the affair, immediately the campaign went into defense mode.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You flat-out denied having a relationship with Rielle Hunter. Did you give me a truthful answer? Were you telling me the truth then?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

JOHNS: After being chased by reporters, eventually he admitted personal failure.

JOHN EDWARDS, FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There's no question that I have done wrong and I take full responsibility for having done wrong. And I will regret for the rest of my life the pain and the harm that I have caused those.

JOHNS: Once a prominent politician preaching two Americas, Edwards himself was living two lives. He had fathered a child with his mistress while his wife, Elizabeth Edwards was dying of cancer.

It got worse. In 2011, the government indicted Edwards on six counts including conspiracy, issuing false statements and violating campaign finance law. He faces up to 30 years in prison.

EDWARDS: We're conditioned to say the same things, we're conditioned to stay what we say and conditioned to be political.

JOHNS: Edwards has spent the last year preparing for his trial, shuffling his legal team and undergoing surgery for a heart condition. Former top aides are expected to testify at his trial. Rielle Hunter has immunity.

EDWARDS: I did not break the law and I never, ever thought I was breaking the law.

JOHNS: Experts say the government has a tough unprecedented case to prove in the arena of campaign finance, but no matter what the outcome, it is the ultimate fall from grace for Edwards who was once adored as a son of the south.

Joe Johns, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: Here's what we all have to keep in mind. The trial of John Edwards, it's not about whether he cheated on his wife, got his mistress pregnant, tried to cover it all up. It's not about whether he lied through his teeth to his loved ones and his supporters. It's about whether candidate John Edwards broke the campaign finance law and that part isn't exactly clear-cut nor is it a slam dunk for the government.

I want to bring in Jeff Toobin. He's our senior legal analyst.

Jeff Toobin, you with me?

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Yes, hi, Brooke.

BALDWIN: OK. Tell me exactly what the government is alleging here as it concerns John Edwards and these two affluent donors, Bunny Mellon and Fred Baron.

TOOBIN: Well, the allegation is fairly straightforward. It's that the money from these two people, which added up to about $1 million was an illegal campaign contribution, well in excess of what they were allowed to give and John Edwards knew that and thus committed the crime of violating the campaign laws.

BALDWIN: That's the argument we're going to hear from the federal government. What about the defense here, what do they argue?

TOOBIN: The defense argument is that this money was not a campaign contribution. This money was their attempt, these two wealthy friends, contributors, it was their attempt to get John Edwards out of marital trouble, to put money up so that Rielle Hunter, the woman who had his baby, could be taken care of and it would not destroy Edwards' marriage.

That -- the allegation from the defense is that this was a personal matter, not a campaign contribution.

BALDWIN: OK, so given what you explained, what we will hear argument wise, here's part of the federal law that, I don't know, this could be trouble for Edwards. It states the $2,300 donation limit extends to -- quote -- "payments for personal expenses of a candidate, unless they would have be made irrespective of the candidacy."

Here you go. It sounds to me like he has to convince this jury that he would gotten these hundreds of thousands, we're talking nearly a million dollars between these two wealthy donors, even if he had not been running for office. Keep in mind here that John Edwards is a multimillionaire. The question is why would he need Bunny Mellon's money?

TOOBIN: That's why we're having the trial. That was why this case proceeded.

The government argument, which is, look, this money would have never come for him but for his candidacy for president. And that is going to be a tough argument for the Edwards legal team to refute. On their side, there is the point that there was a longstanding personal relationship between these two donors, one of whom, Bunny Mellon, is now 101 years old and unable to testify, and the other, Fred Baron, who is a wealthy Texas trial lawyer, he has subsequently died.

So their recollections will not be in the trial and the case will very much come down to person who was the intermediary, Andrew Young, the former Edwards aide who has become very much estranged, very bitter, wrote a book about Edwards and his credibility will really be, I think, at the center of the trial, because he's the one who handled the money.

BALDWIN: And he has a prosecutorial immunity, as does Rielle Hunter.

One more question for you. I have a list here. Take a look. Come see. Obviously, we have the indictment, and this is attachment A, U.S. vs. Edwards. There's this whole list. You can see a voice mail message from Rielle Hunter, voice mail, voice mail, voice mail, voice mail. This goes on and on and on.

Do we have any idea what is in all these voice mails?

TOOBIN: No. The short answer is we don't.

But Edwards will not deny and his defense will not deny there was an extramarital affair. Obviously there's been a child produced from the relationship. So the fact that there was phone contact is not necessarily proof of any crime. It's interesting. His defense lawyer gave an opening statement today where he said John Edwards is a man who committed many sins, but no crime.

And you can be sure that's going to be a theme played over and over again by the defense that, look, this is not about what kind of husband he was, this is not about what kind of father he was. This is about whether he violated the federal code. And it will be interesting to see how the jury tries to sort out those two issues.

BALDWIN: Right. Wow. Jeff Toobin, we will be talking about this for quite a long time.

Jeff, thank you.

I do want to go to Joe Johns. I understand Joe is now outside of that courthouse. There he is, Greensboro, North Carolina.

Joe, tell me about today.

JOHNS: Well, you know, I just want to pick up what you and Jeff Toobin were talking about a minute about Andrew Young, the importance of Andrew Young.

He's really just critical in this case. This is a guy who was the advance man for John Edwards here in North Carolina. He was also very close to him throughout the presidential campaign, even as we have all said many times before the guy who falsely took credit for fathering Rielle Hunter's child.

Well, today in the courtroom we had some very interesting talk about Andrew Young. And some of this is incomplete because we haven't heard from him. He's on the stand right now, but I think the important thing to say is the judge indicated not once, not twice, but three times apparently Andrew Young attempted to allegedly contact certain witnesses who were on the list to testify in this trial, which in and of itself would generally be considered a no-no.

She also indicated, the judge did, that apparently of those three witnesses he allegedly tried to contact, one of those witnesses apparently was a woman he had, what was described as, some type of a one-night stand with in 2007.

So why is that important? It's important because if he's the key and critical witness for the prosecution, the defense is going to be very much about the notion of trying to tear down the credibility of Andrew Young.

BALDWIN: Right, dilute his testimony a little bit.

JOHNS: This shows you a little bit about whether they're going even before he got on the stand. That's what they were talking about in the courtroom today, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Joe Johns, thank you. We will let you get back in that courthouse and listen to the testimony of Andrew Young. We appreciate it. The prosecution's star witness, as you point. Thank you.

Still ahead, a bizarre mystery. Two Cuban actors arrive in America to promote their new movie, Tribeca Film Festival in Manhattan, but suddenly they disappear. Nowhere to be found. Are they in trouble? Or are they just hiding? You got to hear this story. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: This year's Tribeca Film Festival wasn't asking for it but they now have an international mystery on their hands, no the screen, playing out in real life.

These two Cuban actors they are missing. They were supposed to appear in the premier of their film "Una Noche" or "One night," but they were no-shows. The film is about defecting to the United States. Too early to say if this was a case of life imitating art. What we do know is that they landed in Miami en route to New York to this film festival, but they never checked into the New York hotel.

Now a third co-star did get to New York. He attended the premiere with the film's director.

Joining me to unravel this mystery here, Nick Valencia.

Wow. You have these two actors.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's indeed a mystery, isn't it? We don't know where they are.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: So they land in Miami. They were spotted in Miami?

VALENCIA: They were spotted in Miami. They flew to Miami on Wednesday and ever since they have disappeared. There are other actors a part of this film, a third actor that they were supposed to meet up with in Tribeca on Friday, and both of these two 20-year-olds, they never showed.

BALDWIN: They were not traveling together, they were separate?

VALENCIA: The two were traveling together. The third they were supposed to meet up with a couple days later on Friday for the red carpet event and they just never showed up.

BALDWIN: No one has heard anything from them? VALENCIA: We across all platforms have made relentless efforts to try to get in touch with Border Patrol, ICE, the Cuban Embassy, and no one is talking. Unfortunately we just don't seem to know what they are.

BALDWIN: One question I have to ask, when you read about the plot of this film, it's about these teens in Cuba deflecting and living, you know, the big city, bright life lifestyle of all places Miami. And here we are. Might this with a huge P.R. stunt?

VALENCIA: As you mentioned in your lead-in, is this a case of life imitating art?

(CROSSTALK)

VALENCIA: We don't know. But we do know those involved in the film are distancing themselves from this incident. The film's director, Lucy Mulloy, she has had interviews with other media outlets. She said she tweeted earlier in March that she was very excited.

They had made long efforts with the U.S. Embassy and the Cuban Embassy to try to get these temporary visas for the actors to visit the United States for the first time. They show up here and they disappear.

BALDWIN: So what specifically is the director saying?

VALENCIA: That she is very disappointed.

(CROSSTALK)

VALENCIA: I think we actually have a full screen here. Yes, very disappointed in...

BALDWIN: Here you go.

(CROSSTALK)

VALENCIA: Thank you very much here. 'I'm looking forward to the actors arriving from Havana. They're going to love New York. I'm really excited for the New York audience to see how they react."

BALDWIN: As you point out, this is the first time they would have ever come to the country. They're on these temporary visas. If they were to have said, see you, we want to stay in the U.S., legally, since they're on dry land, not to get into the minutia here...

VALENCIA: Right.

We have reached out to the Cuban National Foundation who are often involved in cases like this, cases of people that are possibly defecting. They told us that wet foot-dry foot policy, of course, in the Clinton administration, passed. If a Cuban lands on U.S. soil, they are actually eligible for parole. What is parole? Legal residency. They live here for year and a day, eligible for that residency. If they're caught at sea, the eligibility is not valid.

BALDWIN: And if they're caught before the year and the day, then they go home?

VALENCIA: There's this chance they do go home. But it's the year and the day that they're here that makes them eligible for parole.

BALDWIN: Wow. Let's watch and see.

(CROSSTALK)

VALENCIA: We're going to be keeping an eye on this. We want to find them. I'm sure a lot of other people do as well.

BALDWIN: I'm sure their loved ones are wondering where they are. Thank you, sir. I appreciate it.

VALENCIA: Thank you.

BALDWIN: Now this singer, Jennifer Hudson, she lost her mother, her brother and a nephew in this horrendous killing spree. Now the man charged is on trial. Just a short time ago, the actress herself, star witness. Witness number one. She took the stand. And she got emotional. Sunny Hostin is on the case. We're going to talk about that.

Then later, singer and Bee Gee Robin Gibb out of a coma. Find out why his doctors are absolutely stunned.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Actress Jennifer Hudson, she takes the stand in a Chicago courtroom not too long ago. In fact, she has just wrapped up her testimony in the murder trial of William Balfour. He is the man accused of fatally shooting the actress' mother, brother and 7-year- old nephew.

And prosecutors say that Balfour became enraged that Hudson's sister, his estranged wife, has begun seeing someone else. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Sunny Hostin is on the case.

We talked to Ted Rowlands a moment ago just about how demeanor in the courtroom, wearing all black, and trembling and got emotional, obviously.

SUNNY HOSTIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: It really, really did.

I think what's fascinating is she painted a picture of a very, very close relationship amongst this family. She talked about the fact that she texted her mother every day. Her mother texted her back every day. BALDWIN: Wow.

HOSTIN: She slept in her mother's bed until she was 16 and often slept with her, even with all of her fame, slept with her when she visited the home in Chicago.

And she also talked about the fact that she knew William Balfour, they went to grade school with each other, sixth, seventh, eight grade and she never liked him and that the family was really against this relationship.

BALDWIN: She told her sister, I don't like him.

HOSTIN: Yes, they did not like the two together.

They did not like him. And she also mentioned that she was the one that identified the bodies. And so really a very sad tale, but a tale of a very loving, close family.

In fact, she said the reason search knew something was wrong is because she texted her mother that morning and her mother didn't immediately respond. So we saw not just a celebrity on the witness stand, but just a grieving sister and mother.

BALDWIN: What about the case in terms of evidence? I understand there's very little evidence. How does that help or hurt the prosecution?

HOSTIN: I think that hurts the prosecution. That's because we're in the CSI era right now.

BALDWIN: Era.

HOSTIN: I think jurors just expect that DNA evidence. And I feel thankful I'm not prosecuting cases right now because oftentimes you don't have that type of evidence.

My understanding is they found DNA on the murder weapon, not the defendant's DNA. They tested the DNA from the SUV. It didn't match this defendant. They found fingerprints in the SUV. It didn't match this defendant. They tested his clothes for gun residue. Negative for gunshot residue.

Those are really bad facts for this prosecution. Of course, there are some very good facts for the prosecution because he threatened to kill Julia Hudson, Jennifer Hudson's sister, also threatening to kill her entire family. A very angry person, they claim.

And also that the steering wheel that he was using did have some gun residue. And he also had a bad alibi. He told his girlfriend, if anyone asked, to tell them that he had been there since 10:00 a.m. So when you look at it, there's certainly motive and there is certainly some evidence, but not as much physical forensic evidence as the prosecution would like. BALDWIN: As we watch the rest of it play out, I know when we were talking before about just even jury selection, there was concern because of her celebrity status that Jennifer Hudson would be perhaps, I hate to use the word a distraction, but that people either on the stand or members of the jury, we know she will be in the courtroom for the duration of the trial, that she will take the attention away. Is that still a concern?

HOSTIN: That's right.

I think that's still a concern. Who doesn't know Jennifer Hudson? It was a concern that was voiced during voir dire, during jury selection. They feel they certainly got this impartial jury. There are 18 people seated. There are six alternates. No one knows who is the real juror, who is the alternate.

But I think sometimes it's very problematic when you have that celebrity because people feel they know that person. So now it's not just a murder case. It's a murder case involving someone you know. I think that's a difficult hurdle for any defense team.

BALDWIN: She was the first witness out of the gate. Do we know who's next?

HOSTIN: I suspect Julia Hudson, her sister, will certainly testify. We're going to hear of course from a medical examiner, and we will from detectives. And I think we're going to hear from William Balfour's girlfriend about this alleged alibi. Really, it's supposed to take about a month. We're going to hear from a lot of witnesses. But I suspect another Hudson family member will get on the witness stand.

BALDWIN: Sunny Hostin, thank you. See you tomorrow.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: Now this. Still ahead, a chilling disappearance. A first-grader goes to bed. The next morning her parents walk into her room and she is gone. Police are now taking a look at some new evidence. We're going to talk about that.

Plus, it is not science fiction anymore, robotic legs hitting the retail market. Wait until you see how this giant leap in technology helps people walk again. This is amazing.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWS BREAK)

BALDWIN: Just in to CNN, a new report when Social Security and Medicare will run short.

Both programs are in serious trouble. You need to hear this.

Plus, it's got a lot of you talking and a lot of you delayed. We're going to take you live in the middle of the snowstorm that is causing big, big headaches today.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAD ABUMRAD, "RADIOLAB": My name is Jad Abumrad. I host and produce a showed called "Radiolab."

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... listening...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... to "Radiolab."

ABUMRAD: So "Radiolab" is -- it's a kind of crazy, slightly psychedelic adventure through a big idea.

ROBERT KRULWICH, "RADIOLAB": It's big problems that make us curious.

IRA GLASS, "THIS AMERICAN LIFE": "Radiolab is reinventing what you can do on the radio.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're kind of like these big, one-word titles. Usually it's the stuff everybody's been thinking about, like Aristotle. It's stuff that really has no answer, like, "What is time? What is space? What is consciousness, like, how do I know I'm conscious?"

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: An April snowstorm rocks the Northeast. And just in, a new report shows when Social Security funds may run out. Time to play "Reporter Roulette."

(MUSIC PLAYING)

BALDWIN: Brian Todd, let's begin with you. You clearly drew the short straw today among the CNN cadre of correspondents. There you are in Penfield, Pennsylvania. Tell me -- obviously it's still pouring down, so the question of melting is a big fat no.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's not melting yet, Brooke. It's been a very heavy wet snow and a relentless one. About 18 hours long now and still coming down. It's above my ankles now, about five inches deep. But we were in areas just down the road where it was much deeper at higher elevations.

Check out these trees down here. It's starting to weigh down a lot of these pine trees and some of these other trees where the foliage is just starting to pop out now, because it is Spring, after all. You wouldn't know it, but there's a lot of foliage on the trees right now. That makes the snow heavier on the trees. More snow can gather on the trees, potentially snap limbs on top of power lines.

This limb right above me looks like it may come down on top of me any second now, it's got so much snow on top of it. That's been the worry with snow potentially in some areas and in reality in other areas, snapping off trees and compromising power lines.

About 16,000 customers in this area right now, Brooke, are still without power. That number got up into the mid-20,000 just a couple of hours ago. They're scrambling to get people's power back on right now.

BALDWIN: Yes, I was asking folks on Twitter, someone -- Nathan (ph) lives in Indiana, Pennsylvania, says, luckily it's melting where he, is but hates the snow. Probably echoed right all around where you are, Brian Todd. Thank you so much for standing in (inaudible) today.

Next on "Reporter Roulette," this new report shows when Social Security cash could run out. Also we're going to talk about Wal-Mart in the middle of a big-time scandal. Alison Kosik, we go to you for both of these stories.

First, tell me about this report that's just in. Social Security is in trouble. How soon before benefits run out?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: It looks like, Brooke, benefits could run out by 2033. You know what, not such a huge surprise. You know, every year this just gets worse and worse.

But it doesn't make it any easier to take, considering everyone who works is paying into it right now, but may not reap the benefits when we hit 62 years of age. This is happening because Social Security isn't collecting as much in payroll taxes because of that tax cut that President Obama signed this year.

Also, fewer people are working and contributing to it. Remember, millions of people are still out of work. Also, we're living longer, so that means people are getting those checks for a longer amount of time. So that means more money is going out than coming in.

But Brooke, it is up to Congress. Congress could come to the rescue. But they would have to make some politically unpopular changes to the program, Brooke.

BALDWIN: We shall see. We shall see if they do that.

Meantime, Walmart facing some serious accusations for briberies and payoffs. What's the story?

KOSIK: Yes, this is coming from a really stunning story that came out of "The New York Times" over the weekend that alleged that at Wal-Mart, there was widespread bribery and a cover-up in 2005.

You know, "The New York Times" says that Walmart paid $24 million in bribes to foreign officials to get construction permits, you know, to build Wal-marts in Mexico, meaning zoning approvals, you know, to cut through the red tape faster.

And here's what's really interesting in this whole thing. Walmart of Mexico, wound up telling the headquarters of Wal-Mart in Arkansas all about this. But "The New York Times" said that Wal-Mart, the headquarters there, concealed it from authorities in the U.S. and Mexico. They just wanted it to go away.

Well, now Walmart is now trying to repair its image. It came with out a statement saying that many of the alleged activities in "The New York Times" article are more than six years old, that if these allegations are true, it is not a reflection of who we are or what we stand for.

Here on Wall Street investors are not so convinced, though. You look at the shares right now, Wal-Mart shares down almost 5 percent. You know, there are big worries. You know, what are the legal ramifications of this? What kind of fines can be imposed and which execs could be fired in this big mess, Brooke?

BALDWIN: Alison Kosik, thank you. There's your "Reporter Roulette" for us today.

Humans using robotic legs. I know you think this had to have been science fiction. It is (inaudible) reality now. We're going to learn how this amazing innovation is hitting the retail world. Our favorite go-to, what is she? A self-described tech geek, Katie Linendoll, she's going to join me live, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Taking a walk, going for a jog, even just the simple task of standing on your own two feet, it's something perhaps you and I take for granted. But for those who have lost that ability, it can be more than difficult.

But there is this new crazy, amazing technology that is nothing short of miraculous. I mean, look at this. Allowing people to walk and to stand again. And it's clearly changing lives. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was great to be moving forward again on my own, basically on my own. You know, it's an amazing piece of technology that, you know, all of a sudden takes someone who can't move their legs and helps them move them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was walking on my own and I don't know how to describe it. It's amazing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was thinking maybe I was going to feel like a bag of bones once I stood up. They said to lean forward and push up, like you were just getting out of a chair. And I did that and the unit just kicked in, and I stood right up and it was one of the most unbelievable feelings I've ever had.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Now I'm sitting here with Katie Linendoll, just shaking my head and listening to these people talking about this experience. I mean, these are people without use even of their legs. And so this is called an Ekso. Tell me how it works.

KATIE LINENDOLL, CNN TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so we have been progress of exoskeletons, these robotic suits, over the years.

But here's the deal, Brooke, actually seeing them come into the market and seeing them work, and hearing these testimonials, that's where it gets incredibly exciting. And these Ekso Suits, they're created for people with MS, paralysis, also spinal cord injuries. Let me just break down exactly how they work.

BALDWIN: Yes.

LINENDOLL: They're battery powered and they can actually strap right over the clothing in a matter of minutes. And the best part about it is, one size does fit all. As long as you're between 5'2" and 6'2" and weigh a max of 220 pounds, you can get right into the suit.

Also, a lot of technology, as you can imagine, happening behind the scenes, 30 different sensors; two motors, once at each hip. And once you move that crutch -- you see that they're working with two different crutches, you move the left crutch, that will actually tell the right foot to move forward. You move that right crutch, it's going to tell the left leg to move forward.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: So that's the trigger.

LINENDOLL: -- having on there --

BALDWIN: Let me slow you down. So that's the trigger, because I'm thinking if these people don't have usage of their legs, how do they know to tell the robotic legs to move, but you're telling me it's triggered by what they're holding in their hand?

LINENDOLL: Yes, and imagine, it's some computer that's doing all the work behind the scenes. But it's kind of packed in the back there. And also the battery, which is -- you can't see; it's also packed in the backside. It has three hours of battery life and can be swapped in and out. So really nice to be able to -- you see those legs, they're in a pretty smooth motion. That's what's happening there.

Now you'll also notice that there's a physical therapist behind them. This particular Ekso Suit was created just for rehabilitation centers. Right now in the stages that they're creating, you always need a therapist walking alongside with you. But again, first time these people have stood up and started walking.

BALDWIN: It's beyond stunning. And I guess for these rehab facilities, who are now able to use these, and patients who can use them, how much does this robotic suit cost?

LINENDOLL: So the price is a little steep. So we're looking at about $130,000 for the device all in. They are working on a program called Ekso Hope, where they're helping a lot of the rehab facilities out. Even the wealthiest rehab facilities need help with funding. I should note the top 10 U.S. rehab facilities have purchased the Ekso Suit. And they're working with over 250 individuals right now. Most individuals, the average number of steps, the first time that they strap that suit on, is over 200 steps.

In terms of progress and data capture, that's what makes it remarkable. Again, we have seen exoskeleton suits over the years. There are a number of different companies working on it, but actually come back to me with some data, and tell me what's happening and that it's successful, that's powerful.

BALDWIN: That is amazing. Katie Linendoll, thanks for sharing.

LINENDOLL: Thank you.

BALDWIN: And there is apparently a new trend inside some prisons, inmates using secret codes, in fact, an ancient language that has prison guards very worried. We're going to take you behind bars into the secret world next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Forget high-tech criminals. There are some inmates in New Mexico, they are going seriously low tech to bypass these prison guards, using a language that hasn't been spoken in five centuries.

You know the Aztecs, Montezuma, Spanish conquistadores, a civilization that used to once live in what we now know as Mexico. Well, the way they use to communicate is now being used to run drugs and a lot more. Amber Lee from our affiliate KOAT has this story.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AMBER LEE, KOAT CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): We're learning from the state correction department in Santa Fe, prisoners using the ancient Aztec language to build a new empire, right inside prison walls.

CAPT. JOE LYTLE, NEW MEXICO CORRECTIONS DEPARTMENT: Letters being sent in, sent out, from the streets, over phone calls.

LEE (voice-over): Capt. Lytle said inmates are using the Aztec language, called Natal (ph), also known as Nahuatl, to communicate among each other. His staff recently confiscated a letter written in the Aztec language and translated it.

"Here, Brother Soldier, the constitution that is written in stone."

LEE (voice-over): He says this letter has sparked an investigation because it says a lot, 30 inmates are now being investigated for possibly trying to start a new gang inside the prison.

LYTLE: If numbers of the gang members increase in prison, then the violence within the penitentiaries rise. That also means violence out in the street scan rise as well.

LEE (voice-over): Officers say prisoners will use the so-called secret code to call shots outside of prison for drugs and guns.

LYTLE: And, honestly, you know, all they are trying to do is get over on us, you know, they're trying to get over the system.

LEE (voice-over): Guards say the more they know, the better, because it can help curb violence.

LYTLE: And by us being diligent and trying to learn this language, that's how we combat that type of activity.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: That was Amber Lee (ph) reporting. (Inaudible) prison officials say inmates will often learn the language Nahuatl before they get to prison and then teach it to other inmates. Also they're not allowed to receive books that are not in English, all because of this.

A couple minutes away from Mr. Blitzer in "THE SITUATION ROOM." Wolf, nice to see you. What do you have coming up?

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: We got important news. The president was over at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, as you know, Brooke, today, and he ordered the U.S. intelligence community for the first time to start preparing intelligence reports, to try to take on the issue of mass atrocities and genocide.

As you know, the intelligence community is always looking at national intelligence estimates on whether or not Iran, for example, is trying to build a nuclear bomb, what's going on in North Korea, is Al Qaeda getting ready for more terrorist operations against the United States, important national security issues like that.

But now for the first time, the intelligence community has been tasked by the President of the United States to take on the issue of genocide and mass atrocities. We're going to get into that, we're going in-depth on that.

Fran Townsend, by the way, our national security contributor, will be joining us to discuss that. He also had strong words for those surrounding Bashar al-Assad, the president of Syria.

He's saying they're on the losing side in Syria, they better -- they'd better make some quick decisions unless they want to be charged with crimes against humanity, war crimes if you will, so lots of good stuff coming up right here in "THE SITUATION ROOM."

BALDWIN: Hey, Wolf, before I let you go, I want to ask you, we saw Mitt Romney out, you know, ahead of the primary in Pennsylvania, and he's out with Florida Senator Marco Rubio. We have a little bit of the sound from earlier today. Take a listen.

BLITZER: All right. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R), FLA.: There's only one person that's running for president that understands that, there's only one person running for president that's ever helped do that.

There's only one choice running for president that will help us reclaim and recapture the things that make this nation of ours different from all the other countries on the Earth, and he happens to be here today. His name is Mitt Romney, the next President of the United States.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So despite the Florida senator's gaffe last week, which he kind of laughed off, you know, saying, yes, well, if I were vice president, you know and do you think seeing them together today in Pennsylvania, I mean, trying to read the tea leaves, might this be some sort of audition?

BLITZER: No. I don't think. I think he -- sometime -- he's still a young guy, Marco Rubio, he's got a huge future ahead of him. But I don't think Mitt Romney, based on everything I know about Mitt Romney, based on those close to him, want to take a chance with Marco Rubio right now. He's very attractive, will be very critically important, especially in Florida.

But I suspect he's going to want someone more seasoned, more prepared, in case of an emergency, obviously, to be President of the United States.

So there are others who have had that kind of experience, Rob Portman, for example, the senator, the Republican senator in Ohio, former budget director, special trade representative, congressman, someone like that Romney might feel more comfortable with. And, remember, both Florida and Ohio are critically important.

If he does go with someone in Florida, I wouldn't be totally surprised if the former Governor Jeb Bush who's obviously still very popular down there, speaks Spanish, can appeal to Hispanic voters, he might have a shot if Romney wants to go with him.

But it's still a long ways down the road. They're only beginning the vetting process right now. They're asking a few of the candidates to start assembling all their tax returns. Anything else, any sensitive information, so this is going to go on for several months right now.

BALDWIN: Multi-month courting and vetting process. Wolf Blitzer, thank you, we'll see you at the top of the hour with your show.

Back from the brink of death, Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees is baffling doctors. Have you heard about this? We're going to talk about his remarkable recovery next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: One headline calls this next story the "Real-Life Hunger Games," it's about this death game in the woods. Let me set this up: two men in Utah allegedly set up these real-life booby traps on this forest trial -- this is Provo Canyon, if you know it. And look at these pictures, because you can see -- I'm not talking holes in the ground here.

The Utah County sheriff's office passed these photos along. They say the men crafted this ball of wooden spikes meant to impale. A trip wire would then have set this whole thing off and those are just some of the devices. Forest Service Officer James Cheffler (ph) came across just a day after these traps were apparently put up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICK HAMMERSTAD, HIKER: That could have been us, you know, like we could have gotten hurt for no reason.

EMILY HAMMERSTAD, HIKER: That would kill people, easily, easily, kill people. It's just awful and sickening that people would do that kind of thing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Deputies arrest Kai Christensen, 21 years of age, and Benjamin Rutkowski, 19, on a misdemeanor charge of reckless endangerment. They confessed, according to a sheriff's spokesman, saying they did it to trap animals.

Doctors, they are absolutely baffled by this miraculous turnaround for singer Robin Gibb.

(MUSIC PLAYING, "NIGHT FEVER")

BALDWIN: I know you can't help move when you hear that. He was one-third of the Bee Gees, he had lapsed into a coma from multiple health problems linked to cancer. And three days ago doctors thought he was on the brink of death. As you can see the distress on the face of his wife here, as she and their three kids sat by his bedside.

But now doctors write on Gibb's Facebook page, quote, "Robin is fully conscious, lucid, able to speak with his loved ones. He is breathing on his oxygen -- breathing on his own," I should say -- "with an oxygen mask."

And I want to go to CNN's senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen here.

So he's in a coma, and just wakes up?

ELIZABETH COHEN, SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, and you know, it is amazing and we ran this by a doctor not involved with his care, and he said, that given the circumstances, it's amazing, but it does happen. I mean, people do come out of comas.

What's amazing is that he came out of it, given his medical situation. I mean, this is a very sick man.

BALDWIN: Remind me?

COHEN: Advanced colon cancer, he had two emergency surgeries, very close together, then he has aggressive chemotherapy. One of the big risks of that is that you're going to get pneumonia because you're immune compromised from the chemotherapy. He does get pneumonia. He also has liver failure, and that's when he slipped into the coma.

BALDWIN: And he'd been into the coma for a matter of days?

COHEN: Yes, I believe so. It was a relatively, relatively short period of time. And, they, you know, you sort of wonder like what made him slip into it and how did he get out of it?

BALDWIN: We don't know?

COHEN: We don't know. It may have been that the infection that gave him the pneumonia got into his brain. It could be that the drugs they were giving him to help him breathe, that that played some role.

Liver failure, when your liver fails, it can't filter toxins that go to your brain. That might have had something to do with why he ended up in a coma. But it does happen that people slip in and out of comas. But what's amazing is that with all of this, he's up and -- well, he's not up, but he's talking to people. He's lucid, I mean, that's amazing.

BALDWIN: Do we know, I mean, mentioning, though, all the illnesses and sort of, I imagine, this uphill battle he still faces, even though he is awake and lucid, what does his future look like medically?

COHEN: Right. He does still have an uphill battle, I mean, advanced colon cancer is really tough, and so he still has to battle that, but what's great is that he's gotten out of this -- you know, he's crossed sort of this problem, he's gotten over this hump. So that, of course, is good news.

BALDWIN: And then as he is awake and talking, I mean, just within -- we have just a minute left with you. What the doctor that you spoke with today, to sort of check this story and is this amazing, and he said, yes, how often does this kind of thing happen?

COHEN: You know, we asked him that, and it was interesting. Before we gave him all the details of Mr. Gibb's health situation, he said, oh, yes, people come in and out of comas. I mean, that happens.

But then when we told him how sick he was, he said that's really amazing. I mean, you would have pneumonia and that you would have liver failure and you've just gotten through chemotherapy, and you've just gotten through two of these surgeries, to go from that to a coma and then out of a coma is what's really amazing. BALDWIN: Wow. I'm sure his wife, who we just saw, very distressed, is very, very grateful. Amazing.

Elizabeth, thank you.

COHEN: Thanks.

BALDWIN: Quickly, before I let you go, let's take a quick look at the markets and see how the markets are as we are 20 seconds away. You can see it's down 100 points below, right around 12,926, there is a big Apple, there is an earnings report that's coming out tomorrow, so we're all going to be watching that. Apple stock, if you have it, you're going to be watching really, really closely.

In the meantime, Blitzer and things over in Washington, we'll flip there in your "SITUATION ROOM," starts right now.

BLITZER: Brooke, thanks very much.