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Searching for UPS Crash Clues; Baby Rescued after High-Speed Chase; New Details on DiMaggio Murder Case; Muslim Brotherhood to Keep Protesting; Bradley Manning's Photo Dressed as a Woman; Obama Statement on Egypt Shortly; IOC: Play it Straight at Winter Games

Aired August 15, 2013 - 09:00   ET

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

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: And that is it for us. But a big reminder for NEW DAY Monday, Prince William speaking for the first time since becoming dad. And he is speaking to CNN's Max Foster. You do not want to miss that.

MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: That'd be great.

BOLDUAN: On NEW DAY coming up on Monday. But for now let's toss it up to the fabulous Carol Costello in "CNN NEWSROOM," wearing matching green.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, I got Tim McGraw in the NEWSROOM. I think he beats out that prince.

(LAUGHTER)

He's a bad boy but a good man. Have a great day. NEWSROOM starts now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO (voice-over): Happening now in NEWSROOM, no warning.

ROBERT SUMWALT, NTSB BOARD MEMBER: There was no distress call from the -- from the pilots.

COSTELLO: Investigators back on the scene this morning for the flight recorder.

Also, an 8-month-old abducted. A mother furious.

KRISTEN HOWARD, MOTHER: I hope they light her ass on fire.

COSTELLO: A 25 mile-long chase with speeds over 100 miles an hour with a baby in the back seat. This dash cam capturing the violent end. Are high-speed chases like this irresponsible?

Plus, blurred lines. Coming to the San Diego mayor scandal.

A local TV crew slamming Bob Filner with their own version of the song. Big hash tags with resign and creeper filling the screen.

We're on day 25 of Filner watch. And honoring America's heroes. First responders front and center.

CHIEF MIKE RILEY, FAIRBORN, OHIO FIRE DEPARTMENT: There is no second chance in if you're late, it will matter.

COSTELLO: Country music superstar Tim McGraw and a new program to empower our firefighters and EMTs.

TIM MCGRAW, COUNTRY SINGER: So we're sharing these stories with you. Stories of "Quantum Heroes."

McGraw joins me live, straight ahead. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: And good morning to you. Thank you so much for being with me. I'm Carol Costello.

No flight data recorders, no communications and no answers. The big question remains this morning, why did a UPS cargo jet crash just before landing in Alabama. Right now more than 24 hours after the crash, the flight cockpit and voice recorders have yet to be recovered. Both remain inside the still smoldering wreckage.

Now the answers may be in those recorders since there was no communication from the pilots to air traffic control just before the crash and the only clues available are from witnesses.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROJAN ROWELL, WITNESS: When I got up, it just, I just heard like a boom, boom. And I didn't know what it was. So I was just staring out the window and I kind of looked up and saw a bunch of smoke everywhere.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: David Mattingly is live in Birmingham with more.

Good morning, David.

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. So many stories like that that we're hearing in this residential area just outside of the crash area. I'm standing right on the edge of that neighborhood where that flight went right over the rooftops here.

We're going to push in now so you can get a closer look at what's going on at the scene behind me. That's the crash site as everyone came out of their homes last night and that's what they saw. That place where the impact happened and the plane broke apart. The pieces still out there for investigators to go through today.

And I tell you what, the people in this area are used to hearing jet noise, but what they heard yesterday morning is something they will never forget. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY (voice-over): No answers yet, only questions.

SUMWALT: The initial information that we have, subject to verification, is that there was no distress call from the -- from the pilots.

MATTINGLY: Federal crash investigators will count on witnesses to re- create the last seconds of the ill-fated UPS cargo flight crashing just short of Birmingham's airport. One story emerging from people who heard it, possible mechanical problems.

SHARON WILSON, WITNESSED CRASH: It was extremely low and then it sound like it was sputtering, like it was out of fuel.

MATTINGLY: The plane broke into pieces on impact with the forward cabin separated from the rest of the wreckage. But the recovery of the all-important voice and data recorders hampered by smoldering fires.

(On camera): Visual evidence on the ground leaves some very clear clues the plane went overhead right here taking out the tops of trees and knocking down power lines. Barely missing the houses.

(Voice-over): Local officials say weather didn't seem to be a factor, but investigators promise nothing will be overlooked.

SUMWALT: Systems, operations, air traffic control, weather. We will be looking at everything that may be relevant to the causation of this accident.

MATTINGLY: And that includes the actions of the pilots. Both killed in a crash that came so close to killing others.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY: And what we're waiting for this morning is confirmation from the NTSB if they found that flight data recorder and the voice cockpit recorder. Those two important devices that are recording all that information that will help them decide exactly what happened here.

The NTSB not confirming if they've been able to recover that this morning. A spokesman for the Birmingham mayor's office, however, tells me this morning that the fire department here was successful in extinguishing those smoldering flames that were in the tail section that were preventing investigators from retrieving those devices so that is a step in the right direction for this investigation to move forward -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Yes, we're trying to get the NTSB to talk to investigators in the next hour of NEWSROOM. We'll keep everyone posted.

David Mattingly, thanks so much. Terrifying video to show you this morning. A high-speed chase with a kidnapped baby in the back seat. That's the car swerving on the interstate. The driver got up to 100 miles per hour before slamming into a squad car, then spinning out of control. Authority say the driver was a friend of 8-month-old Kaidyn Stover's mother.

CNN affiliate WGCL reports 22-year-old Samantha Barrett is now facing a slew of charges. Amazingly, the baby, whose name is Kaidyn, was not hurt in the wreck. He is now safe at home with his mother.

Mike Paluska of CNN Atlanta affiliate WGCL has more for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MIKE PALUSKA, WGCL REPORTER: This is how the chase ended in dramatic fashion. A woman identified by police as Samantha Barrett jumps out of the car and takes off. Sheriff's deputies from Butts and Lamar County chase her down, then a Butts County deputy goes straight for the backseat to pull the 8-month-old boy William Kaidyn Stover to safety.

HOWARD: I hope they light her ass on fire. I hope they light her ass on fire.

PALUSKA: An infuriated mother has some choice words for Barrett who police say took her son on a wild police chase with speeds over 80 miles per hour.

HOWARD: She's a piece of (EXPLETIVE DELETED).

PALUSKA: Kristen Howard says Barrett, who she considered a friend, stole her car with Kaidyn inside. Around 12:30 Wednesday afternoon after an AMBER Alert was issued, Henry County Police responded to a 911 call that Barrett was spotted on Interstate 75 south. What happened next was an intense car chase during which police say Barrett attempted to ram police. All while the baby was in the backseat.

Stop sticks caused her to blow a tire allowing police to stop the car and make an arrest. Barrett faces grand theft auto, kidnapping, cruelty to children and a felony traffic charges in multiple counties.

HOWARD: I'm doing well, my baby's well.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: And we're glad about that. WGCL's Mike Paluska, thanks so much for that report.

Police say they're now looking into whether Barrett acted alone or if others were involved in the baby's abduction.

Gripping new details emerging about Hannah Anderson's kidnapping. We now know more about how the teenager's mother and brother were killed. Unsealed search warrants say James DiMaggio tortured and killed his long-time friend Christina and her son Ethan. A crow bar was found near Christina's body. As for where Hannah was at the time, that remains unclear. But we do know someone picked Hannah up after cheerleading practice.

CNN's Casey Wian is in San Diego with more this morning.

Good morning, Casey.

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Actually coming to you from Los Angeles this morning. If this story couldn't get any more disturbing, it has. As you mentioned, those search warrants, newly released. Disclosed that not only were Hannah Anderson's mother and younger brother killed, before they died, the search warrants say they were tortured.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WIAN (voice-over): Grisly new details are surfacing in the alleged kidnapping and murder case of suspect James DiMaggio. According to these newly released search warrants, DiMaggio tortured and killed his best friend's wife and 8-year-old son, and shot and killed the family dog. Police also say they found a crow bar and what appeared to be blood on the ground next to Christina Anderson's body.

The 40-year-old DiMaggio then allegedly then set his house on fire and kidnapped the couple's 16-year-old daughter, Hannah, who the documents say he spoke with 13 times on the phone earlier that day. The FBI rescued Anderson on Saturday and killed DiMaggio during the confrontation. An Idaho coroner says he was shot at least five times.

BRETT ANDERSON, HANNAH'S FATHER: As for my daughter, the healing process will be slow. She has been through a tremendous, horrific ordeal.

WIAN: Now home, Anderson has quickly taken to social media to help cope with her pain. Most recently posting these pictures to her Instagram profile. The first glimpse we're getting of her after the harrowing ordeal.

She writes, "God gives his toughest tasks to the strongest soldiers. She also posted this picture of her mother and brother, writing, "My two beautiful angels." She dedicated this post to them, the piece of paper reading, "In the clouds, I'll meet you again. Rest in peace."

The post his the social media sphere three days after her rescue, leading some expert to question her public catharsis.

WENDY WALSH, PSYCHOTHERAPIST: Listen, this is a 16-year-old who's totally traumatized. And she's not thinking. Sometimes in a numb state, you are doing things that you don't really, really consider the consequences.

WIAN: But others say social media is, in fact, a good outlet for Anderson.

STACY KAISER, PSYCHOTHERAPIST: There is a ton of research that says that when someone has been through a traumatic experience it's really helpful to talk and share their story. WIAN: Anderson has also shared her story on Ask.FM answering anonymous users' questions. A user asked, why didn't you run? He would have killed me. Are you glad he's dead? Absolutely.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WIAN: Now, that Ask.FM account has since been disabled but the Instagram account of Hannah Anderson is still active and there were new postings as recently as last night -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Wow. Casey Wian, live in Los Angeles this morning. Thank you.

An eerie calm grips Cairo one day after 525 people were killed in violence across Egypt. The interim government and supporters of deposed president Mohamed Morsy blaming one another for the bloodshed. Protesters say security forces launched a full-on assault. But those troops say they responded only after the protesters attacked them.

CNN's Ian Lee is on the ground in Cairo this morning.

Tell us more, Ian.

IAN LEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, right now a couple of things we're watching. First of all, we have a government building in the government of Giza which state TV is reporting as being attacked by Muslim Brotherhood. Supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood. They show pictures of that on fire.

Now we can't independently verify that. But that's what they're reporting.

We are also watching this death toll from yesterday's clashes which seems to be rising dramatically. Earlier this morning it was just over 200. Now it's well over 500. And we're expecting it to continue to rise as they count the bodies.

A very horrific scene from yesterday where we saw the security forces clashing with the Morsy supporters and really turn that whole camp into an inferno. There were pictures of the camp set on fire. Whole city block, really. The street looked like on fire. We're watching that. We're also watching for the Muslim Brotherhood's response. They have vowed to go to the streets today. They said that they will not be quiet and the security forces have said they're not going to allow that to happen. So, really, we're watching that. It's a recipe for another day of violence.

COSTELLO: All right, Ian Lee reporting live from Cairo this morning.

Convicted Army Private Bradley Manning says he's sorry for leaking thousands of classified documents. This as the Army releases a picture of him dressed up as a woman. The image was part of an e-mail Manning sent to an Army psychologist. In the photo, Manning wears a long blonde wig and makeup. In court yesterday the photo became public. Manning says when he leaked the documents to WikiLeak he was struggling with gender identity issues.

Our Pentagon correspondent Chris Lawrence was inside that military courtroom. He's here to tell us more.

Good morning, Chris.

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good morning, Carol. Yes, the defense basically wants to prove two things by releasing that photo. Number one, they want to -- they want to paint Manning as a very confused young man, who was struggling with some deep psychological issues, including whether he wanted to live his life as a woman while deployed in Iraq as a United States soldier.

They also want to show it for another reason. Because he sent that picture as part of an e-mail to one of his master sergeants in his unit. And that sergeant never really forwarded up the chain of command. And so the defense is trying to say, look, there were red flags all along the way that the Army never acted on. This was a troubled individual who should have been removed from that classified material well before he was -- Carol.

COSTELLO: It's just amazing that with all of the information the Army apparently had on Bradley Manning, he had access to these sensitive documents.

LAWRENCE: You're right. Because that e-mail, you know, talking about, you know, wanting to live as a woman, showing that picture of himself in that wig and that lipstick, that's just one thing. His master sergeant at one point found him curled up in the fetal position with a knife. At one point he had a really violent reaction to some criticism during a meeting. He overturned a table and later he struck a female soldier.

So, the defense is trying to say, look, the Army missed a lot of red flags along the way. And he was unable to sort of get treatment for this while he was deployed in Iraq.

COSTELLO: And how will all this matter in the sentencing phase because that's where we are right now.

Will this matter, do you think?

LAWRENCE: It could. I mean, the judge, remember, is already bypassed the most serious charge of aiding the enemy. So, she may be open to reducing that 90-year sentence. And that's what this is about.

This isn't about trying to prove innocence at this point. That ship has sailed. He is guilty of violating the Espionage Act. This is about getting a lower number from that possible 90 years in prison, showing that Manning had a very troubled upbringing, showing that he had some psychological issues, trying to prove that the Army, you know, missed some signals.

Of course, yesterday, Manning himself coming forward and saying, look, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I hurt people. I'm sorry I hurt the United States.

I went about this all wrong. Of course, all this contrition coming at the 11th hour as he faces this sentence. But remember, he's only in his mid-20s. Getting 20 years in prison at his age is a lot different than getting 60 years in prison, Carol.

COSTELLO: When you put it that way, yes. Chris Lawrence reporting live for us this morning. Thank you.

Still to come in NEWSROOM: it's been rain and more rain for the central part of the country. We'll tell you which city took the brunt of it and whether there is any end in sight, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

COSTELLO: We understand that just about now, President Obama is making some comments on the situation in Egypt. The president has not commented on the bloody and violent situation that is happening in that country right now.

Dan Lothian is live at the White House to tell us more. He's on Martha's Vineyard, that's where the president is because he's on vacation.

Dan, everybody has been waiting for the president to come out and say something about Egypt and they're all wondering one thing. Will the president finally say that what's happened in Egypt was a coup?

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, it's unclear whether the president will go that far. The White House is saying a determination was made that it should not be called a coup in the interest of the United States.

But as you pointed out, he will be hearing from the president for the first time on this issue. The White House is saying that the president will make a statement to the pool cameras at 10:15. Now, that will be taped, it will not be live.

A few minutes after that before we get a chance to see that videotape to hear exactly what the remarks are from the president.

So far, the face on this story for the administration has been Secretary of State John Kerry. Yesterday, he held a briefing with reporters. That's when he condemned the violence in Egypt, talked about the need for restraint for the Egyptian interim government to respect the people of Egypt. The White House also putting out a statement yesterday.

But this is the first time that we'll get a chance to hear from the president directly on reaction to the latest developments in Egypt, Carol.

COSTELLO: Dan, the violence just continues to get worse in Egypt, although a curfew in place now and things appear to be pretty calm. But, yesterday more than 200 people died in this mass effort by police to clear the streets of protesters and more than 1,000 people were injured and the United States sends $1.3 billion in aid to Egypt's military.

A lot of Americans are wondering whether we should continue to do that.

LOTHIAN: That's right. And a lot of members of Congress have been questioning that, as well. We heard that coming from Senator John McCain, as well. We press deputy press secretary Josh Earnest on this issue yesterday whether or not there was reconsideration of this more than $1 billion in aid to Egypt. Much of that for the military and he said that it was still under review.

It is, perhaps, the only piece of real threat, I guess, that the U.S. has in relevance in Egypt and in the negotiations with Egypt. We will see, in fact, if the president will talk about that particular aid. But last word we got was that it was under review.

But, a lot of pressure for the administration to do more. Right now, there's just a lot of talk going on. A lot of discussions we're told of the highest levels between U.S. officials and officials in Egypt. But unclear what the next step will be to put more pressure on Egypt.

COSTELLO: All right. Dan Lothian, reporting live from Martha's Vineyard and we'll check back with you when the president's tape of the comments is released. We believe it to be 10:15 Eastern Time, just about an hour from now.

Still to come in NEWSROOM gay pride demonstrations now banned in Russia. But what about Olympians who want to wear rainbow pins at the Sochi Games? Well, the Olympic Committee, IOC, says, no. Stay in the closet.

We'll be back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Gay Olympians who want to make a statement against Russia's anti-gay laws cannot only be in trouble with the Russian authorities, they could also face punishment from the International Olympic Committee. That guidance from the IOC first reported by "Gay Star News", comes less than six months before the start of the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.

An IOC spokesman says the Olympic charter bans any type of political demonstration during the games.

So, let's talk more about that with Hudson Taylor. He's the founder and executive director of Athlete Alley. It's a group dedicated to encouraging athletes and others to respect all people involved in sports.

Good morning.

HUDSON TAYLOR, ATHLETE ALLEY: Good morning. COSTELLO: So, the IOC comes out and says, hey, if you're gay and you're going to compete in the Olympic games in Russia, don't say anything about being gay because the Olympics is no place for politics. Your reaction?

TAYLOR: Well, I think because of these Russian laws, all of a sudden being gay or being who you are becomes political or becomes something that could be seen as political.

So, we're in a very interesting place because if you turn to other pieces within the Olympic principles, you have Olympic principle number six saying discrimination of any kind should not be tolerated and is incompatible with belonging to the Olympic movement.

So, on one hand, you have Russian law, which is in direct opposition to these principles and then on the other, you have the IOC using these principles to call on athletes to hide who they are. It's really unfortunate.

COSTELLO: I think the Olympic Committee just wants the Olympic Games to adhere to the spirit of competition and can't we all get along together, just for this period of time and put our controversies aside.

TAYLOR: Absolutely. I mean, the games are for the athletes. But when an athlete who is going and trying to compete and win a gold medal is at threat for being arrested or fined because of who they love, that's a problem.

You know, not only is that a problem for Sochi, but also a problem when we look at the next Olympic cycle. You know, on September 7th, the IOC is determining the next host city. So, there needs to be greater accountability for what countries are hosting the Olympic Games. And greater protection of our athletes and fans wherever the games are held.

COSTELLO: So, final question for you, you suggest that athletes go over there and, you know, somehow communicate they're gay. The IOC says, don't do that.

So, will you change your tune?

TAYLOR: So, I think our course of action and what we're planning on promoting is actually the very principles that the Olympic movement is based upon. So, maybe wearing a rainbow pin would be seen as political, but if we look at Principle Six in the Olympic charter, you know, it says that the game should be free from discrimination.

If an athlete speaks out in support of the founding principles of Olympism, I don't think it will be seen as political by the IOC and I also don't think it will be seen as homosexual propaganda by Russian law, but it will enable people to use the games to speak out against this hypocrisy and to really make the games a vehicle for inclusion and respect and hopefully make a difference on the ground in Russia.

COSTELLO: Hudson Taylor, thanks so much for being with me. TAYLOR: Thanks for having me.

COSTELLO: Still to come in NEWSROOM: Michael Jackson's ex-wife breaks down on the stand. Debbie Rowe tells jurors about the first time she saw the pop star take the drug that ended up killing him.

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