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Nevada Parole Board Granting O.J. Simpson Parole; Weiner Not Withdrawing From Mayoral Race; Hearing Begins On Manning Sentence; Misconduct By TSA Workers On The Rise, According To Government Report; Changes Coming To San Francisco International Airport After Asiana Crash
Aired July 31, 2013 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: We're following breaking news here in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Wolf Blitzer reporting from Washington.
We've just received word from the Nevada parole board granting OJ Simpson parole. Ted Rowlands is joining us on the phone. He's been following what's been going on. Ted, tell our viewers what exactly is happening with the former NFL star.
TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): Well, Wolf, he has been granted parole and one might think that means he's getting out of prison, but that is not the case. He's been granted parole on some of the charges, the current charge on the robbery, that he was serving.
However, starting October second, he then begins serving charges -- other charges -- sentence for other charges. He will likely spend at least four more years in prison. This will reduce the amount of time he spends in prison but this was expected and he will not be getting out of prison because of it.
However, still on the table is a motion for a new trial that a judge in Las Vegas is still mulling over so we're awaiting her decision. Over the next week or two we expect it. That is where OJ Simpson's lawyers believe he really does have a very good chance of getting out of prison if she grants him a new trial. He's already been in prison for five years for that robbery attempt and kidnapping in a Las Vegas hotel room. You remember he went in to get his what he calls (INAUDIBLE) memorabilia from two of his old cohorts and has been spending -- spent the last five years in prison. So, yes, the headline is the parole board grants parole to OJ Simpson but the bottom line is he remains in prison.
BLITZER: He remains in prison. And I'm reading the statement released by the Nevada parole board which is headlined, the Nevada Parole Board order granting parole to OJ Simpson. And among the reasons they site for this decision, as you know, Ted, to grant him parole, are his positive institutional conduct, participation in programs, lack of prior conviction history and that he has consecutive sentences yet to serve.
And I just want to be precise with what the board said in their statement. The parole board -- the parole of OJ Simpson becomes effective when he reaches his minimum parole eligibility date which is October 2, 2013. That's in a few months. After that date, as you correctly point out, he will begin serving the 12-month minimum term on four concurrent 12 to 72 month sentences imposed for using a weapon during the robbery and kidnapping, use of a deadly weapon enhancement. He will be seen by the board again in 12 months for parole consideration on these four sentences. Consecutive to these four enhancement sentences are two consecutive 18 to 72 month terms for assault with a deadly weapon.
Bottom line from all of that, those complicated words, Ted, is that even though he will be eligible for parole on October second of this year, he's still going to stay in jail, as you point out, for at least another four years unless there's another change?
ROWLANDS: Unless there's another change. And I just got off the phone with his attorney. And this was expected that he would be granted parole. And you mentioned the model prisoner aspect. Two weeks ago, OJ Simpson met with his parole board via a video conference and he talked to the board at length saying that he basically is this prisoner that counsels other prisoners and his record is clean. So, they expected that he would be granted parole October second (INAUDIBLE) be in prison.
And, again, they really have their fingers crossed on this motion for a new trial which was litigated in the spring during a week-long hearing in Las Vegas. They think that he really does have chance at actually getting out of prison when that decision comes down to the -- in a few weeks.
But for now, he does remain in prison for at least the next several of years unless he is granted more parole down the stretch it produces. So, yes, he's on parole but, no, he's not getting out of prison.
BLITZER: He's not getting out yet but I'm sure he and his attorneys are encouraged by this decision, by the Nevada Parole Board. He's 66 years old. Obviously, all of us remember the trial back in the 1990s. He was found not guilty of killing two people, including his wife and another individual in Los Angeles. But how is his health right now? And you were in the courtroom. You saw him up close.
ROWLANDS: Well, he has aged. He's put on some weight like anybody, you know? He's aging. There have been rumors that he is suffering from horrible health but according to his attorneys, he is just fine. I mean, He's aged maybe more than the normal person, because, frankly, spending time in a Nevada prison is hard on anybody. But they say that his health is fine and he's very much looking forward to getting out. He has regular conversations with his family, with his children. And he is very positive that this hearing in the spring in Los Vegas really did prove his case for a new trial.
And one last things. A new trial is one thing but getting out is another. If he is granted a new trial, he will likely be released because he's already served more time than prosecutors originally wanted him to on this armed robbery case. In fact, at one point, here was a deal for just two years which he turned down. But now, he's been in prison for five years. If he gets a new trial, he'll be out.
BLITZER: And you say what -- we should know within the next few weeks if he'll get a new trial?
ROWLANDS: We should. The Judge Linda Bell has had this now for several -- a couple months, and we anticipate that she will release her findings one way or another within the next two weeks. So, we got a little OJ Simpson here today but the big news, at least from OJ's standpoint, will be coming in a couple of weeks.
BLITZER: Nevada parole board order granting parole to OJ Simpson. That's the headline even though, as you point out, he's not out yet unless he gets a new trial. We should know that soon.
And one more question, Ted. If he does get a new trial, there's no doubt he will be out on bail as that new trial gets going, right?
ROWLANDS: One would think so because he was granted bail throughout the first trial and as was established by this decision today by the parole board, he has been a model prisoner. So, one would assume if he's granted a new trial, he would be out on bail at first and then likely released from charges.
BLITZER: All right, we'll stay on top of the breaking news. OJ Simpson possibly getting paroled, at least on some counts as early as October, and then we'll see what happens with this new trial if, in fact, he is out of jail any time soon. We'll stay on top of this story. Ted Rowlands staying on top of it for us. Thanks very much. We'll take a quick break. There's lots of other news happening right here in the CNN NEWSROOM, including the latest developments on Anthony Weiner. There are new developments on that case in New York. Stay with us.
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BLITZER: Despite repeated calls for Anthony Weiner to withdraw from the New York mayoral race, Weiner says he's not going anywhere. In a new rather defiant online video, the embattled candidate says, and I'm quoting him now, "Quit isn't the way we roll in New York City."
Rosa Flores has the story.
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ANTHONY WEINER, MAYORAL CANDIDATE, NEW YORK: If someone wants to come out with something embarrassing about you in your private life, you have to talk about that a while.
ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Weiner in damage control mode, tweeting out a revamped online message.
WEINER: You know, sometimes people say, you know, you have -- this campaign is pretty rough, you might want to quit. Quit isn't the way we roll in New York City.
FLORES: But his message could be drowned out, once again, by an explosive and graphic rant by Weiner's lead spokeswoman, Barbara Morgan, about a former intern's criticism of the campaign in the "New York Daily News." In a four-letter word rampage to "Talking Points" memo, Morgan used offensive language including the word slut and other expletives. Describing the ex-intern, Olivia Nuzzi, as fame hungry then threatening to sue Nuzzi while saying, she, quote, "sucked at her job."
In a statement to CNN, Morgan said, quote, "In a moment of frustration, I used inappropriate language in what I thought was an off-the-record conversation. It was wrong and I am very sorry." But that's not all. The controversy escalated again following Weiner's response to "Daily News" columnist, Denis Hamill.
When asked, there is no one you are sexting now? His answer, quote, "You can quibble about beginnings, middles and ends but what we're talking about is over a year ago." So, we asked the question ourselves but we couldn't hear his answer. Morgan, the same spokesperson, now tangled up in her own media frenzy confirmed his response to us following the event.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What was his answer?
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BLITZER: Rosa Flores is joining us now from New York. She obviously said, no, Rosa. I understand you've also learned that Weiner cannot actually officially get out of the race even if he wanted to.
FLORES: You're absolutely right, Wolf. Technically, he can't withdraw from the race. Now, this is according to the spokeswoman from the Board of Elections in the city of New York. Now, Weiner will be on the ballot regardless. You see, the date of declination or the date when a candidate can actually withdraw from the race has passed. It was July 15th. Now, there are three ways he can technically withdraw. If he moves out of state, dies or gets convicted of a felony -- Wolf.
BLITZER: All right, Rosa. Thanks very much. Rosa Flores is reporting for us.
A hearing is underway to determine how much time an Army private will serve for the biggest leak of classified information in U.S. history. The sentencing phase of Private Bradley Manning's court martial follows the judge's verdict only 24 hours ago. She acquitted Manning of the most serious charge of aiding the enemy but found him guilty of about 20 other charges.
Brian Todd is joining us now with more on Manning's rise from obscure Army private to famous or infamous, we should say, leaker of classified information. Brian, Manning avoided a life sentence, potentially, but he could still face many, many years in prison, maybe even decades. So, tell our viewers how we got to this point.
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, Bradley Manning had a troubled history long before he started leaking the information. One former military attorney says that will certainly be a mitigating factor in his sentencing and those hearings, as you mentioned, are going on as we speak. We've investigated manning's background and got information on a broken home, his struggles with identity and other social issues.
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TODD (voice-over): He was once on suicide watch in a military brig. Now, Private Bradley Manning has avoided a verdict of aiding the enemy but it's possible he could still spend the rest of his life in prison. Before all there broke, before he was accused of the largest intelligence in U.S. history, Manning, according to friends and acquaintances, struggled to fit in where ever he went.
Born in Oklahoma, his parents divorced in 2001 and Manning moved with his mother to her native Wales. He is described by friends there as a headstrong, quirky computer genius.
JAMES KIRKPATRICK: (INAUDIBLE), you know, if he didn't agree with something, he would, without a doubt, make his opinion heard.
TODD: Manning dropped out of that school and moved back to the states in 2005. He told others that he drifted before being taken in by an aunt who is a lawyer near Washington D.C.
Manning, according to friends, was gay and felt he have ridiculed in the military for it.
In an instant message before he was taken into custody, Manning wrote, I've been isolated so long. I just wanted to be nice and live a normal life but events kept forcing me to figure out ways to survive. Smart enough to know what's going on but helpless to do anything, no one took any notice of me. Now, he's a world renowned whistle blower or traitor, depending on your point of view.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TODD (live): The judge could take several days to decide his sentence. I was told a short time ago that in today's hearing prosecutors and defense attorneys have gone back and forth on the expertise of a retired brigadier general, who is a military intelligence official and that person may be testifying on the damage to national security.
Wolf?
BLITZER: Well, on that point, Brian, Julian Assange, the head of WikiLeaks, has weighed in on the verdict, on the alleged damage caused by Manning's leaks. What is he saying?
TODD: He has, Wolf. Assange has said there's been no accusation that anyone was come to any harm as a result of Manning's leaks. Assange says, in fact, it's been the opposite, that investigations, prosecutions for torture have taken place as a result of the leaks.
So at least Julian Assange is kind of putting a positive spin on everything Manning allegedly did.
BLITZER: All right, Brian, thanks very much; Brian Todd reporting for us from Washington. Sleeping on the job and stealing from passengers: a damaging new report against the TSA, the same agency charged with keeping us safe.
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BLITZER: All right, so some questions, serious questions now about flying and your safety. If you think you're always safe, you might want to think again. According to a new government report, misconduct by Transportation Security Administration workers up now by more than 26 percent over the last three years.
Some of the most serious violations included TSA agents sleeping on the job, allowing family and friends to go through security without screening, leaving work without permission and stealing. More than 1,900 of the incidents were deemed significant enough to be considered security threats. Very disturbing information.
There are also changes coming in over at the San Francisco International Airport. Nearly a month after the deadly crash of that Asiana Airlines jet, international flights landing on one of the main parallel runways can no longer touch down side by side with another plane.
Our Dan Simon is joining us now live from San Francisco with more.
Dan, I assume this is the direct result of that Asiana crash?
DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Let me tell you exactly what the FAA is saying about this, Wolf. They're saying that since the Asiana crash on July 6th, they've seen an uptick in the amount of foreign carriers aborting their landings. So clearly this is a preemptive measure to try to reduce the chance of another major incident at the San Francisco International Airport.
Let me tell you exactly what the policy is. The FAA says foreign airlines landing on one of the main parallel runways are no longer allowed to land while side by side with another plane.
This all went into effect last week and is just temporary while the airport works to upgrade its electronic systems that help pilots land their planes. That system, Wolf, known as the glide slope indicator, was taken offline as the airport works to upgrade its systems.
Now the FAA didn't elaborate as to why only foreign pilots are affected by this. But this is bound to generate controversy because domestic pilots are not impacted. The bottom line here, Wolf, is the FAA thinks that this is in the best interest of the flying public.
Wolf?
BLITZER: How will this change or affect flight delays, arrivals at the San Francisco airport?
SIMON: The FAA says do not expect significant delays. We should note again that this did go into effect last week and thus far there haven't been any major problems, Wolf.
BLITZER: All right. Dan Simon in San Francisco for us, thanks very much. When we come back, we'll get back to the top story this hour, the breaking news we're following.
The Nevada parole board ordering parole for O.J. Simpson. But he's going to be in jail bit longer. We'll have all the latest information. Parole for O.J. when we come back.
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BLITZER: We'll get to the O.J. Simpson parole in a moment. But there's some other stories we're following right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
The man who admits keeping three women locked in his house for nearly 10 years officially learns his fate tomorrow. Ariel Castro pleaded guilty to over 937 criminal counts last week, including kidnapping and murder. Tomorrow he will be sentenced in Cleveland. His plea deal recommends a life sentence without parole plus 1,000 years.
Castro's lawyer says his client will be allowed to speak at the sentencing.
An American college student who was abandoned in a holding cell for days without food and water has settled with the U.S. government for $4.1 million. Daniel Chong (ph) drank his own urine to survive and he even wrote a farewell note to his mother before authorities found him.
The 25-year old was locked up and forgotten last year after drug enforcement agents raided a San Diego, California, home they suspected was being used to distribute ecstasy. Chong (ph) was never formally charged or arrested.
A University of Pittsburg researcher has pleaded not guilty to murdering his wife with a lethal dose of cyanide. Robert Ferranti (ph) was extradited from West Virginia to Pennsylvania yesterday. And he made his plea there by video conference. His wife was the former head of women's neurology at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.
The former president of Penn State University and two former officials at the university are headed for trial. They're accused of obstruction of justice and other charges in connection with the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal.
The former university president, Graham Spanier (ph), former athletic director Tim Curley (ph) and former senior vice president Gary Shultz (ph) appeared at a hearing in Harrisburg this week. Prosecutors claimed they knew about allegations against the former assistant coach Sandusky but lied about it to a grand jury. All three have pleaded not guilty to the charges. Something is making people, lots of people sick in Iowa and Nebraska and today we apparently know what it is: lettuce or something mixed with lettuce in a pre-packaged salad sold in supermarkets. State and federal health officials are still trying to pinpoint the brand name of the salad and exactly where it was sold.
Nearly 200 people in two states have come down with a nasty intestinal bug now linked to the packaged salad.
Steven Mandernach is the head of Food and Consumer Safety Bureau in the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals. He's joining us right now,
Mr. Mandernach, thanks very much for coming in. Tell us, based on all the information you have, what's making these people sick and what are you doing about it?
STEVEN MANDERNACH, FOOD AND CONSUMER SAFETY BUREAU, IOWA DEPARTMENT OF INSPECTIONS AND APPEALS: Well, sure, what we have going on here in Iowa and Nebraska -- and we can only speak to those two outbreaks -- is we have a packaged salad mix which includes romaine and iceberg lettuce, carrots and also red cabbage that has been linked to 80 percent of the cases in Iowa and a similar number in Nebraska.
The salad mix, we actually need to correct something, was distributed through a variety of sources. At least at this point, that's our best understanding, so not just in the grocery -- I can't tell you if it was the grocery environment or not, but it went through a lot of distribution channels.
What we're doing about it is --
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BLITZER: Let me interrupt for a moment.
Just explain what that means, a variety of sources. They weren't all contained in some packaged product that people were selling?
MANDERNACH: They were in packaged salad mixes, but not only served -- or not -- the exclusive distribution method wasn't to the grocery environment. We saw it through the food service environment also, while restaurants also. So we do want to make sure that that's -- the public is aware of that.
Right now we're working with our federal partners, both the CDC and FDA, to do it in the next step. We can tell you the farm and the actual producers of this product were not in Iowa and Nebraska.
They were outside of our jurisdiction so we've been working with them where the appropriate agencies then to continue this investigation and have ultimate regulatory authority over the farm and the production facility.
BLITZER: Could you tell us where that farm is or what state or what city? MANDERNACH: We can tell you it's well outside of Nebraska and Iowa. Most of this produce in this country is not -- in grown in areas that our -- your viewers are well aware of. But it could be outside the country; it may be domestic. We can't tell you that for sure.
BLITZER: But so you don't know? Is that what you're saying?
MANDERNACH: We're saying at this point there are lots of possibilities. We have narrowed it to a single source through a single distribution pattern. But there's lots of ingredients in that salad. There's the four ingredients in those salads. What we can't tell you is where every single one of those ingredients came from. So we can't definitively tell you that answer yet.
BLITZER: All right. But there's basically one source but you're not saying whether it's domestic or outside of the country.
Can you tell us the brand name of the product that was sold, the package?
MANDERNACH: State law here in Iowa prohibits us from releasing that information unless there's a public health interest, an immediate public health interest. At this point, the state's medical director has determined there's not. All the product has been out of the market price here in Iowa for at least 30 days, probably closer to 40.
BLITZER: All right. We'll see what happens. A lot of concern out there. Thanks very much, Steven Mandernach, joining us from Iowa. He's the head of Food and Consumer Safety in that state.
