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Hung Jury for Jodi Arias; Bridge Collapses in Washington State; Airplane Diverted from Manchester

Aired May 24, 2013 - 11:00   ET

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

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ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, ANCHOR, "CNN NEWSROOM": Good morning, everyone. I'm Ashleigh Banfield, live in Phoenix, Arizona, a speed boat and a scuba divers racing to the rescue as an interstate bridge collapses, sending the cars on it plunging into a Washington state river.

We have exclusive pictures from the chaotic scene and the survivors' chilling stories. It's coming your way this hour.

Also, not everyone left that Oklahoma hospital before the tornado tore it apart. One mom-to-be in labor and the brave nurses who surrounded her as the walls literally came down, just might make you believe in miracles.

And new evidence in the Trayvon Martin murder case. It paints a much different picture of the 17-year-old. New motions, new accusations leveled by his killer's defense team.

But we start here in Phoenix, Arizona, where it looks like we're going to have to start all over again, almost, at least in the sentencing phase of Jodi Arias' trial.

Twelve jurors, 13 hours and 48 minutes of deliberations, almost five months of testimony and they still could not decide altogether as one whether she should get life or she should get death. The jury vote was a split of eight-to-four in favor of the death penalty.

Our Casey Wian has the details.

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JUDGE SHERRY STEPHENS, MARICOPA COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT: Ladies and gentlemen, I understand you have reached a verdict.

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There was confusion and surprise, even in the voice of the clerk who announced the jury in the Jodi Arias case was hopelessly deadlocked on the death penalty for the murder of former boyfriend Travis Alexander.

CHRISTINA MCCAIN, COURT CLERK: We the jury, duly impaneled and sworn in the above entitled action, upon our oaths unanimously find, having considered all of the facts and circumstances, that the defendant should be sentenced, no unanimous agreements. WIAN: Arias' sighed as members of Alexander's family sobbed. Jurors who declined to speak with a throng of reporters covering the trial were emotional and so was Judge Sherry Stephens.

STEPHENS: Ladies and gentlemen on behalf of the participants in this trial. I wish to thank you for your extraordinary service to this community. This was not your typical trial.

WIAN: That it wasn't. It lasted nearly five months during which Arias took the stand for 18 days and later made one last plea for her life.

Under Arizona law, jurors were allowed to ask more than 200 questions. Throughout, there were sexually graphing images and recordings, and most difficult to forget, gruesome photographs with Alexander's body with dozens of stab wound, a bullet hole and his neck slashed nearly ear-to-ear.

STEPHENS: Thank you, please be seated.

WIAN: Judge Stephens set a few trial date for July 18th, only on the question of the death penalty.

Prosecutors could be allowed to bring up Arias' recent string of interviews, according to lawyers with knowledge of death penalty prosecutions in Arizona.

For example, this statement to a KSAZ reporter minutes after her conviction.

JODI ARIAS, CONVICTED MURDERER: Well the worst outcome for me would be natural life. I would much rather die much sooner than later.

I said years ago, I'd rather get death than life, and that is still true today.

WIAN: Nearly two weeks later, she told the jury a different story.

ARIAS: To me, life in prison was the most unappealing outcome I could possibly think of. I thought I'd rather die.

But as I stand here now, I can't in good conscience ask you to sentence me to death because of them.

WIAN: As Arias gestured to her family, the family of her victim, Travis Alexander, has clearly struggled with the jury's inability to agree. They won't be granting interviews until there is a sentence, and, according to county sheriff, neither will Jodi Arias.

One way out of this mess could be a negotiated settlement where prosecutors take death off the table in an exchange for an agreement by Arias to accept a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of release, and perhaps a waiver of her right to appeal.

No one knows if Arias would take that kind of deal.

Casey Wian, CNN, Phoenix.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BANFIELD: Casey, thanks, Casey.

So what happened in the jury room behind closed doors and did Arias do herself any favors by taking the stand for 18 days?

The jury foreman, William Zervakos, was speaking this morning about this, in fact, amazingly said that he had not seen or heard of any of those interviews that Jodi had given to the television stations.

And he talked a lot more about his thoughts, being a juror on this panel on ABC's "Good Morning America" today. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILIAM ZERVAKOS, JURY FOREMAN: I'm very sure in my own mind that she was mentally and verbally abused. Now is that an excuse? Of course not.

Does it factor into decisions that we make? It has to.

We are charged with going into presuming innocence, right? But she was on the stand for so long, there were so many contradicting stories, but I don't think it did her any good, no, that length of time, no.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BANFIELD: Very interesting.

I want to bring in HLN's correspondents Jean Casarez and Beth Karas on this.

Beth, let me just ask you off the bat. It's fascinating always to hear what jurors have to say and what they are thinking when they reach their decisions.

But the fact that this juror had said that he wasn't aware of all these television interviews Jodi had been giving during the trial, any panel that comes in at this phase, any new panel, well, they would have been privy to all of it.

They live here, they watch television, and they had no admonishments from any judge.

BETH KARAS, HLN LEGAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. But that's not the point in picking a few jury, whether they have heard about the case or been exposed to this.

They will be asked whether they could set aside what they know and any opinions they have and just decide the case based upon the evidence to be presented in front of them.

And if they can't set aside what they know because they know too much, and this community was saturated with news, then they won't be selected.

However, I have spoken to people in this community who believe that the nation is following this case more closely than Maricopa County. There are plenty of people in this county who don't know the details of the case.

BANFIELD: Well, you know what? It is fascinating. There is a very loyal television following, and then there are those who have absolutely no time for the television coverage of this case.

But, Jean, about that prosecutor, he has been saturated with this, not just for the five months everyone's been seeing him, but for years, for five years. He has one person he's put on death row already, a female on death row already.

Is there any thought that he would capitulate to any sort of deal at this point, even though the county prosecutor said they want to go ahead with the plans for retrying this phase? Is there any thought he'd capitulate and just strike a deal for any reason now?

JEAN CASAREZ, HLN LEGAL CORRESPONDENT: I think they will all look at it. Prosecutor Juan Martinez may not make the official determination. It may be the elected county attorney.

But I really looked at the statement that they issued yesterday after all of this and the mistrial was declared. It said that we will assess and look at all the facts before us in determining what to do.

That tells me they definitely are going to reflect on all of this. But as it stands now, there will be a status conference on June 20th. On July 18th, the judge has ordered a retrial of this penalty phase.

But this community is saturated with this case. I mean, it's local reporters that got in to interview Jodi Arias. It's been on all the local news. It is front page of the newspaper every day.

I have talked to some people, though, that say, I don't watch it. I can't watch it. I don't want to hear all of the gruesome facts. Those people, maybe they don't know about it, but they would not be good jurors.

BANFIELD: Beth, the -- Jodi Arias goes, once again, back to where she has been staying quite some time now, the Estrella county jail, where the person in charge is Sheriff Joe Arpaio, one of the toughest sheriffs in the country, and he's brought down the hammer on all the media interviews, no more media.

Is there any reason to believe that that could change and we could yet again see Jodi Arias with hair, makeup and a nice lighting setup in the county jail?

KARAS: Well, there is always that possibility, I suppose. Jodi Arias, though, is her own worst enemy from the moment she started reaching out to the detective before she was arrested to try to get information and start spinning him with lies until after the verdict and awaiting this penalty phase decision. She just keeps talking, and it's in her best interest to stop. However, Sheriff Arpaio is not going to look out for her best interests. He is looking out for himself, and perhaps it's just time to stop letting this now convicted first-degree murderer tell her tales in front of the cameras.

So I don't think he's going to lift it, but it's always a possibility.

BANFIELD: So stay tuned on that.

Beth Karas, Jean Casarez, excellent work as always, and thank you for your very analytical perspective on this very salacious saga and soap opera. Thank you so much.

We're going to talk a little bit more about this case, the arrogance of Jodi Arias. That's coming up a little bit more.

You won't believe it when you see the juxtaposed comments that she's made over the course of this case. It's a little bit mindboggling, and it might give you just a five-month synopsis of who this person was and became throughout the process.

In the meantime, a bridge collapses and sends drivers on it plunging down into the river below. Three people had to be pulled to safety.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When we got there, they were just taking somebody out of the truck. As you see there, they were loading them on to that boat right there underneath the bridge.

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BANFIELD: The start of this Memorial Day holiday just got difficult for people traveling between Seattle in Washington, and Vancouver, Canada. It amounts to tens of thousands. We are live at the scene, next.

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BANFIELD: Just imagine the terror you'd go through as part of a bridge collapses, plunging drivers into bone-chilling waters.

That's exactly what happened over the Skagit River, and a dramatic rescue entailed. And now three people are in the hospital in Washington state.

Listen to one man who actually drove into the water as that bridge just crumbled beneath him.

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DAN SLIGH, INJURED IN BRIDGE COLLAPSE: When the dust hit and I saw the bridge start to fall at that point, forward momentum just carried us right over. And as you saw the water approaching, it's just one of those you hold on as tight as you can and just a white flash and cold water. The Skagit was definitely cold this time of the year.

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BANFIELD: What's perhaps the most incredible part of this story is that everybody made it out.

I want to go straight to the scene right now. For more, Dave Chesson is with the Washington state Department of Transportation. He's here. And, also is Washington state police sergeant, Kirk Rudeen. Thank you to both of you.

Dave, let me just begin with you. There has been a lot said about the condition of this bridge, something that's called, quote, "functionally deficient."

And while that sounds frightening for someone who might be driving over it, it doesn't necessarily mean exactly that it's dangerous.

But what does it mean to say something is functionally deficient in the way of a bridge?

DAVE CHESSON, WASHINGTON STATE TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT: That just means if we were to rebuild the bridge today, we would build it with different standards.

This bridge was just inspected in November of last year, so we wouldn't be having drivers drive on this bridge if we thought there were any concerns whatsoever.

BANFIELD: So, as I understand it, and you are going to have to clear this up for me if you could, Kirk, although we are not establishing any cause officially right now as I understand it, there was an accident and there was a truck that did crash into part of the structure of the bridge.

Can you sort of round that out and give me the real pick?

SGT. KIRK RUDEEN, WASHINGTON S TATE POLICE: Yes. About 7:00 last night, we had a semi that was traveling southbound on I-5, a flatbed semi. It was carrying a very large oversized load basically, it was an equipment casing form for a drill rig. And in this section of I-5, it's two lanes southbound, two lanes northbound. It was in the right- hand lane.

And as the semi went onto the bridge, what the initial investigation shows is it appears the right front portion of that load that it was carrying struck one of the girder support sections of the bridge. And that seems to have been the catalyst that kicked off the following events that led to the collapse of the bridge.

BANFIELD: Now, Dave, I'm looking at these pictures and I have to be honest, I just can't believe anybody survived falling that far and tangling up in that mess below. I don't know if you know the answer to this, but how did they get out? How did they survive this?

CHESSON: Well, we're very fortunate that we had rescue people that were able to respond quickly and get them out. And the other important thing is that only one section of the bridge failed and went into the water. The other three sections of the steel bridge are still intact.

BANFIELD: It's amazing. It's just truly amazing and it's very lucky. I think you definitely have your work cut out for you not only with that bridge but now obviously making sure other bridges in that state are going to be all right. Dave Chesson and Sergeant Kirk Rudeen, thank you for your time and good luck to you.

We are learning a lot more right now about the men who were accused in that brutal death and that awful attack on the British soldier in broad daylight as authorities are searching for other clues and other possible suspects. Was there a conspiracy here?

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Checking now on some other top stories we're following here at CNN. Some frightening and confusing moments in Britain. A British fighter jet had to be scrambled to escort a Pakistani jetliner that was diverted from Northwestern England to London's Stansted Airport. All of this after a Pakistan International Airlines flight landed. Two men were arrested on suspicion of endangering an aircraft. An official for the airline says the incident was caused by an unruly passenger. British officials are saying this is not believed to be terror-related.

Britain's security services are being criticized for possibly missing signs that might have prevented an attack in which a British soldier was hacked to death in London. Government sources say the country's domestic security service, known as MI-5, was aware of the two men suspected of carrying out this attack but did not consider them a threat beforehand. The victim has been identified as 25-year-old Lee Rigby. The two alleged attackers were shot by police. They're under guard by hospitals and another man remains in custody under suspicion of conspiracy.

And tune in tonight for a special HBO documentary, "Manhunt". It is a remarkable true story of the search for Osama bin Laden. It begins at 9:00 Eastern right here, only on CNN.

President Obama just addressed graduates at the Naval Academy in Annapolis. We've got live pictures we want to show you. This is just after his commencement speech, which, for him, was unfortunate in terms of the timing because it followed a series of sexual assaults in the military and a growing scandal at West Point with a sergeant who was charged with secretly videotaping women cadets while they were dressing or while they were in the shower.

The president stressed, while he made this speech, the need for moral courage. Have a listen to what he said just before he began this handshaking you see on your screen.

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BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Those who commit sexual assault are not only committing a crime, they threaten the trust and discipline that makes our military strong. That's why we have to be determined to stop these crimes, because they've got no place in the greatest military on earth.

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BANFIELD: And the president added that the military remains, in his words, one of the most trusted institutions in the United States.

Also making news today, openly gay Boy Scouts will be allowed into that organization starting January 21st, 2014. It's policy change for the Boy Scouts and it's kicking up some fresh controversy, too. More than 60 percent of the Scouts' national council voted Thursday to lift that ban on gay Boy Scouts. But some say the historic policy change doesn't go far enough. Those against the move are warning that the Scouts may face lawsuits for continuing to ban gay adults from being able to perform duties as scout leaders.

A Coney Island landmark is back in business just in time for Memorial Day.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Three, two, one!

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BANFIELD: Now, that's a ribbon cutting. That's Nathan's. Nathan's Famous. It was forced to shut down for the first time in nearly a century after Superstorm Sandy pummeled that neighborhood last October. The flagship store reopened today but, man, were there extensive repairs there. The customers are already lining, up, too, to get their fill of the oysters and the claims and frog legs and of course the famous hot dogs. Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs, it's nice to see that after so long.

What's happening here in Phoenix surrounding Jodi Arias' case is not what the attorneys want in Florida. There are new demands that are coming from the defense team of George Zimmerman. Plus, new photos of Trayvon Martin from his cell phone as the trial nears.

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BANFIELD: I want you to listen to some of these descriptions of a young man who was shot dead on a street in Florida. Shot dead, pothead, gun dealer, street fighter. The person I'm talking about is Trayvon Martin. Is that really who Trayvon Martin was? Because the answer appears to be an emphatic yes if you talk to the defense attorneys for the man who's charged with killing him, George Zimmerman.

George Zimmerman was that neighborhood watch volunteer who is now going to court on a second degree murder charge. His lawyers are basing their claim on pictures and text messages found on that were found on Trayvon Martin's cell phone and they just released as new evidence, as discovery in this case. The lawyer for Trayvon Martin's family is strongly rejecting this contention, saying the defense, instead, is playing with stereotypes.

CNN's David Mattingly has more on these new developments.

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DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Are these the photographs of a troubled and violent teen? Pictures and text messages from Trayvon Martin's phone made public by George Zimmerman's defense attorney suggest the 17- year-old was no stranger to pot, to guns and to fighting.

MARK O'MEARA, ZIMMERMAN DEFENSE ATTORNEY: That might serve as recreation or whatever but he was very used to fighting, that has used some drugs in the past and again may 17-year-old have but he has as well.

MATTINGLY: Three months before he encountered George Zimmerman, Trayvon Martin sends text messages about a fight saying his opponent didn't bleed enough, only his nose. Less than a week before the fatal encounter Martin texted, "I hid my weed." "It's wrapped." And "I got weed" and "I get money Friday."

The attorney for Martin's family says the messages, the images and their implications are irrelevant.

BENJAMIN CRUMP, MARTIN FAMILY ATTORNEY: Are they trying to say, George Zimmerman was justified in killing Trayvon Martin because the way he looked? It's that same stereotypical mindset that caused George Zimmerman to get out of the car and chase Trayvon Martin. And that just isn't acceptable in America.

MATTINGLY: Trayvon Martin was unarmed the night he was shot and killed by George Zimmerman. But a week before, he seems to be trying to sell an automatic pistol and apparently turns down an offer of $150.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BANFIELD: Our David Mattingly joins us now from Atlanta. David, I'm only assuming that prosecutors are staying tight-lipped as they usually do. But this isn't necessarily good for prosecutors. They always have the option of a motion to suppress this kind of evidence, but are they indicating anything yet?

MATTINGLY (on camera): Well, right now, the prosecution isn't saying anything. In fact, they would like the defense to be quiet as well. They're going to asking the court, again, renewing their request for a gag order in this case because jury selection is just a couple weeks away.

But you're right. I mean, this is something the prosecution has to deal with. They're going to have to argue about it before the judge. This is a way that the defense is more or less firing a shot across their bow saying that if you try to attack the character of George Zimmerman in this case, then we're going to do the same thing to Trayvon Martin.

So they're pretty much just laying out a possibility here. One of the possibilities is the judge won't allow it and the jury will never see these texts or these pictures.

BANFIELD: All right. David Mattingly, live for us, thank you for that.

For more perspective on these new developments, I want to turn now to our legal expert minds, a former juvenile court judge, Glenda Hatchett joins us. She's also an Emmy-nominated television judge. And CNN legal analyst and former federal prosecutor Sunny Hostin.

Sunny, let me begin with you, if I can.