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Father Killed Over Text; Freedom Industries Under Federal Investigation; Christie Scandals Dwarf Annual Speech; Delayed Response to Mall Carjacking?; Madeleine McCann Search Narrows to Three People; Japan Company to Buy Jim Beam
Aired January 14, 2014 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Words to live by.
We'll take you to the "NEWSROOM" on that.
Carol Costello, I don't know if you're listening, hopefully not. Get on to a different topic.
(LAUGHTER)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: I know exactly what she was talking about. I've already read that part of the book.
CUOMO: All righty then.
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: Yes. You go girl. I love that book. I can't wait to read it all.
Thanks, guys. Have a great day.
Happening now in the NEWSROOM, water emergency grows. More cities rushing to prevent the tainted West Virginia water from getting into their drinking supply. This as we ask this morning, where's the company in all of this? Why weren't they regulated more thoroughly?
Plus tragedy near Tampa. A father gunned down in the middle of the afternoon. Cops say a retired police captain shot Chad Oulson because he was texting his 3-year-old daughter.
Also this morning, State of the State, with Bridgegate, and an investigation into Superstorm Sandy funds. Chris Christie is front and center today. Will he address the scandal anew?
NEWSROOM starts now.
And good morning to you. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Carol Costello.
We begin with another tragedy. Another pointless death with no real reason why. A silly argument over texting in a movie theater turns deadly. Popcorn thrown, a gun is pulled and a 43-year-old father is dead.
This is Chad Oulson. He was with his wife Nicole to see the movie "Lone Survivor." Police say a retired Tampa police officer, Curtis Reeves, irritated at Oulson's texting, pulled a gun and shot Oulson. Oulson's wife tried to shield her husband. But the bullet went through her hand.
Neighbors of the retired officer say it's hard to believe he's even accused of senseless crime.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Curtis is a good guy. He's always been very nice to my wife and myself.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I thought it can't be. You know, he just is not that kind of person. I just can't imagine. I can't imagine what happened that he would do that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Tory Dunnan is in Fort Lauderdale this morning.
And, Tory, the fact that a retired cop allegedly killed someone over something so stupid is mind boggling.
TORY DUNNAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, this is just really a bizarre story. And you have to imagine what this was like. Because it was really the middle of the day, there were 25 people in this theater. They were there to watch "Lone Survivor" and likely they didn't expect to witness arguments over texting which turned into a shooting.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DUNNAN: A frightening and fatal afternoon at this Florida movie theater on Monday, all apparently because of texting.
SHERIFF CHRIS NOCCO, PASCO COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE: It's absolutely crazy that, you know, it would rise to this level of altercation over somebody just texting in a movie theater.
DUNNAN: The previews just began to role at Cobbs the 16 Movie Theater in Wesley Chapel when an altercation erupted off screen.
CHARLES CUMMINGS, WITNESS: There seemed to be some irritation between a guy sitting two rows -- two seats over from us and the guy behind him over a cell phone.
DUNNAN: The suspect seen here, 71-year-old Curtis Reeves, was a retired Tampa police captain. Police say he was irritated that 43- year-old Chad Oulson was texting his 3-year-old daughter.
CUMMINGS: Their voices start going up, there seems to be almost a confrontation, and then bang, he was shot.
DUNNAN: Charles Cummings, a retired Marine who served in Vietnam, says it was absolutely shocking to be caught in the crossfire once again.
CUMMINGS: He staggered two seats over, fell on my son and I.
DUNNAN: The father and son watched in horror as Reeves allegedly shot and killed Oulson with a .38 caliber handgun.
ALEX CUMMINGS, WITNESSED SHOOTING: He said, man, I can't believe he got shot. Blood started coming out of his mouth and I was like, I just held him. I was, like, trying to hold him up and he just fell down.
DUNNAN: Amid the chaos, heroes step up.
CUMMINGS: A fellow was in the movie, he said he was a nurse, jumped down. They started pumping the gentleman's chest until the paramedics arrived.
DUNNAN: An off-duty deputy in the theater detained the shooter and secured the gun until police arrived. Reeves now charged with second- degree homicide.
CUMMINGS: I can't believe people would bring a pistol, a gun to a movie. I can't believe they would argue and fight and shoot one another over popcorn or even a cell phone.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DUNNAN: And so, Carol, the victim's wife, Nicole Oulson, is recovering from that gunshot wound to her hand, as you mentioned. Police say she was trying to shield her husband. Now we're also hearing from authorities that the suspect was at the movie theater with his wife and that these two couples didn't know each other at all.
Another thing to point out is that in the state of Florida you can bring a gun to a movie theater. That's if you have a concealed weapons permit. But one thing to consider about all this is when that gun was brought into the movie theater in the first place. And obviously that's all going to be part of this investigation.
COSTELLO: Well, he's a retired police officer. So I'd assume he has a permit to carry a concealed weapon. So that was perfectly legal.
DUNNAN: You know, we'll see exactly what did and didn't happen, Carol. One thing I do want to mention is that police say this argument escalated over time. He got angry at first, then he left the movie theater apparently to go complain. You know, at that point we don't know whether or not he got the gun or what happened so we'll wait for the investigation from police.
COSTELLO: Understand. Tory Dunnan, thanks so much.
West Virginia's water problem could soon be Ohio's. Cincinnati officials are so worried contaminated water could flow in the Ohio River, they've taken action. Two water intake valves that feeds Cincinnati's water supply are set to be closed today as the water from West Virginia moves through the Ohio River.
Also over the past 24 hours, a small number of West Virginia residents were again allowed to drink their tap water. But hundreds of thousands of others are still banned from drinking their water.
As for the company responsible for this mess? Freedom Industries is now under federal investigation and has not spoken one word since this rather contentious press conference on Friday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GARY SOUTHERN, PRESIDENT, FREEDOM INDUSTRIES: It has been an extremely long day. I'm having a hard trouble talking at the moment. I would appreciate it if we could wrap this thing up. I will --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have a lot -- well, we actually have a lot of questions. And it's been a long day for a lot of people who don't have water.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Then there was this Facebook post from Kathy Stover-Kennedy early on. She's the girlfriend of a Freedom Industries executive. Quote, "I'm not asking for anyone's sympathy but a little empathy wouldn't hurt. And just you know, the boys at the plant made and drank coffee this morning. I showered and brushed my teeth this morning and I'm just fine." End quote.
Alexandra Field is in Charleston, West Virginia. Tell us more about this company.
ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. A lot of questions obviously being asked about this company right now. And a lot of people still waiting for their water. A hundred thousand people have been told that they can turn on the faucets now.
The do not use ban has been lifted for them. But 200,000 people are still waiting for the same. And the issue, the fear of contamination is spreading now beyond Charleston. Two cities in Kentucky as well as Cincinnati, Ohio, are doing everything that they can to prevent even the possibility of contaminating their water supply.
The spill that happened here in Charleston, West Virginia, is 200 miles away from the water treatment facility in Cincinnati, Ohio. But officials in Cincinnati say that they will turn off two of their intake valves to allow the plume to pass without contaminating their water treatment facility.
They say that these steps are being taken out of abundance of caution. And it will not affect customer supply today. Similar steps were taken in Kentucky yesterday. Two different cities also turned off their -- their intake in order to let those plumes pass and to avoid even the smallest risk of contamination here. Because, of course, Carol, we know that people here in Charleston, West Virginia, know what something like this can do. It isn't pretty and it hasn't been pleasant.
COSTELLO: I want to talk a little bit about the company, too. This company was last inspected in 1991 because basically this company is considered a storage facility for pollutants, not for hazardous materials.
In light of what happened. That sounds a little crazy.
FIELD: Yes. That seems to be the consensus among a lot of people, Carol. Some lawmakers included. A lot of people now have questions about what kind of oversight was in place here, what kind of regulations were required.
Over the weekend the state's Department of Environmental Protection has said that the plant had last been inspected in 1991. The DEP is now saying that according to their record, they've learned that an inspector also visited the plan in 2010 to investigate the report of an odor but apparently that inspector found nothing.
And in 2012, inspectors were also asked to take a look at whether or not the processes at this plant have changed in any way and if the plant now required additional permits. They decided at the time the plant did not require additional permits and they did not inspect that tank -- Carol.
So, a lot of questions now being raised about whether or not there should be stricter oversight here. The Chemical Safety Board has sent a team from Washington to Charleston. They're on the ground now. They are beginning their investigation.
And here's what they told us.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHNNIE BANKS, U.S. CHEMICAL SAFETY AND HAZARD INVESTIGATION BOARD: We will look at the way that the material was stored, the way that it was processed, the way that it was handled, the way that it was regulated in terms of oversight of other bodies. We'll look at the inspection frequency, how frequent was that and how rigorous was that inspection.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FIELD: The CSB expects they could be on the ground here for a couple of weeks. They could be reviewing the situation for really as much as a year.
And from there, Carol, they would start to make their recommendations.
COSTELLO: All right. Alexandra Field, thanks so much, live from Charleston, West Virginia, this morning.
A huge bipartisan spending bill could get its first big test on Wednesday when House leaders vote on it. The legislation has in it including $1 trillion. $1 trillion. Under the plan, federal workers and military personnel would see their pay increase by 1 percent. It would also protect disabled veterans and some military spouses from pension cuts set to go into effect -- next year.
Another change that Republicans really like, capping the number of TSA agents at 46,000. It would also require them to certify one in two travelers for expedited screening by the end of the year.
If Hillary Clinton decides to make a bid in 2016 she would not only have to fight with Republicans but also with some within her own party.
CNN has exclusively learned that some Iowa Democrats are actively seeking out alternatives to Clinton in the run-up to the presidential race. They say respect for Clinton runs deep, but in the voice of one activist, new leadership is needed right now.
Still many acknowledged it will be tough to find someone with enough political fire power to defeat Hillary Clinton.
Embattled New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has kept a low profile in the wake of two political scandals that could derail his presidential ambitions. It's been five days since his marathon news conference and he denied any role in that massive traffic jam that may have been an act of political revenge.
And since then, the feds had opened a new investigation, specifically whether Christie improperly used Hurricane Sandy relief funds to make these tourism commercials starring his family. Critics say they're just thinly disguised campaign ads.
CNN's Erin McPike is in Trenton with more.
Good morning, Erin.
ERIN MCPIKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, good morning.
Well, what we know is that today in his State of the State address, Chris Christie will address the scandal over the George Washington Bridge lane closures but he'll also talk about a couple of new proposals that he will unveil today.
One is an education reform. He wants to lengthen both the school day and the school year for New Jersey students. He'll also have a property tax relief measure that he'll unveil today. So basically this speech is his chance to tackle the bridge controversy and then turn the page to talking about getting things done while the national spotlight is on him.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MCPIKE (voice-over): In the midst of weathering a full blown political super storm, Chris Christie will discuss the bridge closure scandal when he delivers his annual State of the State address this afternoon. This will be the first time the popular New Jersey governor is in front of cameras since his marathon apology last week.
GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: I am soul searching on this. But what I also want the people of New Jersey to know is that this is the exception, not the rule.
MCPIKE: But it's not just Bridgegate anymore. On Monday, CNN revealed the new storm clouds forming over the brightest spot in his governorship, his response to Superstorm Sandy.
CHRISTIE: Because we're stronger than the storm.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You bet we are.
MCPIKE: Democratic Congressman Frank Pallone thinks these tourism ads that promote the whole Christie family might be a misuse of the federal relief funds given to help New Jersey recover from Sandy.
REP. FRANK PALLONE, (D) NEW JERSEY: I think there's extra money that was spent on the ads to put him on the air during the campaign that could be used for other purposes for Sandy relief.
MCPIKE: Federal auditors are probing those allegations. Though Christie's office dismissed the revelation as conveniently timed and added the Obama administration approved the effort.
Another possible incident of retribution, Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop, a Democrat, considered endorsing Christie for reelection last year, but then declined to do so on July 18th. Over the next two days, Christie appointees canceled upcoming meetings with him, leading Fulop to write an e-mail to former Port Authority official, Bill Baroni, who has since resigned.
In the e-mail obtained by CNN, he wrote in part, "I am not sure if it is a coincidence that your office canceled the meeting several weeks back that seemed to be simultaneous to other political conversations elsewhere that were happening. Prior to that, you were always very responsive, and I sincerely hope the two issues are not related."
And there's more on the scandal that started it all, the lane closures to the George Washington Bridge last fall.
JOHN WISNIEWSKI, NEW JERSEY STATE ASSEMBLYMAN: I do think laws have been broken.
MCPIKE: New Jersey Assemblyman John Wisniewski will lead a brand new special committee forming today that will utilize a special counsel to investigate Christie's key staffers and the governor himself. That committee will have subpoena power and intends to call on fired deputy chief of staff Bridget Anne Kelly and Bill Stepien, Christie's longtime trusted political adviser.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MCPIKE: Now, Carol, there are a couple of polls that came out yesterday that may shed a little light on how the perception of him has changed or not changed since these controversies began. The first is a PEW Research poll that shows that 60 percent of American voters say their perception of him has been unchanged since the controversies began.
But there's also a Monmouth University poll that shows that his approval rating within the state has dropped about 6 percent in the last few weeks. In fact the first time it's gone under 60 percent since he started talking about Sandy recovery really.
So in other words, Carol, we have to see how this will shake out over the next couple of months. Because new developments keep coming out and attacks from Democrats keep on coming -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Doesn't seem to be hurting him now at all, though. Interesting.
Erin McPike, thanks so much.
Still ahead on the NEWSROOM, the search for Madeleine McCann. This morning there are new reports that investigators are narrowing their focus to three people.
CNN's Erin McLaughlin is in London.
Good morning.
ERIN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. That's right. Potentially significant developments in the Scotland Yard's Madeleine McCann investigation. I'll have more on that after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: New 911 tapes reveal a wife's frantic calls for help. You might remember the story. Just 10 days before Christmas, Jamie Friedland was forced to watch her husband slowly die in a New Jersey mall parking garage after he was shot in the head protecting her in a carjacking.
We now know the screaming wife had to wait for more than 17 minutes for emergency crews to even arrive at the scene because -- and get this, because the ambulance could not fit under a low ceiling in the parking garage.
CNN's Margaret Conley joins us now with more -- Margaret.
MARGARET CONLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, let's get straight to one of those calls. This one was made by Dustin Friedland's wife after the couple was -- carjacked in an upscale mall in New Jersey. Dustin was shot in the head.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED 911 OPERATOR: 911, is this an emergency?
JAMIE FRIEDLAND, WIFE OF DUSTIN FRIEDLAND: Yes. This is an emergency. I'm at the Short Hills Mall parking lot. My husband has been shot. They called the ambulance like half an hour ago. Where is he?
UNIDENTIFIED 911 OPERATOR: They're on their way, ma'am. They're on their way.
FRIEDLAND: When, when, when?
UNIDENTIFIED 911 OPERATOR: They're on their way, ma'am --
FRIEDLAND: When? Give me a time.
UNIDENTIFIED 911 OPERATOR: They're there. They're at the mall. They're at the mall. They're trying to get to you, ma'am.
Ma'am, they're trying to get with you. Speak with the officers, ma'am.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CONLEY: It's difficult to hear. We could hear Dustin's wife Jamie pleading with the 911 dispatcher for an ambulance. Their car had been taken. Dustin was shot. And they were stranded in the parking lot.
That parking lot has become key as more information has come out and these 911 calls were released. According to local reports, the couple had to wait at least 17 to 18 minutes for an ambulance to get to them. It could have gotten to the crime scene earlier but either the vehicle was too tall for the entrance or the ceiling entrance was too low for that car to get into the parking lot.
Now allegedly emergency workers had to wheel a stretcher up the entrance of the parking lot to get to the couple. So you can imagine how much extra time that took.
We've reached out to the Millburn Police chief and to EMS, the emergency response team, for more details but we haven't heard back yet. They're not talking. Dustin was later pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.
Now there are lots of unanswered questions in this case, Carol. We continue to make calls. Four men were charged in Dustin's death, all pleaded not guilty -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Such a sad story.
Thanks so much, Margaret Conley.
This morning new buzz and renewed efforts in the search for Madeleine McCann, the British girl who may well be the most famous missing person in the world.
Six and a half years after she vanished during a family vacation in Portugal, Scotland Yard is now reportedly focused on three people and it's asking Portuguese officials for help.
CNN's Erin McLaughlin live in London with more.
Good morning.
MCLAUGHLIN: Good morning, Carol. This is a potentially significant development. The Crown Prosecution Service here in the UK sending an international letter of request to be able to conducts interviews inside Portugal. At the moment officials here in the UK not saying publicly why they have issued this letter, who they would like to talk to exactly, though authorities in Portugal tell us they have yet to receive the letter, adding that they're aware that the British investigation currently focusing on three officials.
They noted to CNN that those individuals as yet have not been detained. Now this is the latest development in what has been an exhaustive investigation, spearheaded by Scotland Yard. It has spanned some 30 countries, involved interviews with hundreds of witnesses. They've combed through thousands of documents and phone records.
And again, how this latest international letter of request fits into that picture very much remains to be seen -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right. Erin, many thanks to you.
Still to come in the NEWSROOM, how do you take yours? On the rocks, mixed? With a dash of bitter? American classics like Jim Beam and Maker's Mark won't be American owned much longer.
Christine Romans has all the details.
Hi, Christine.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol. And some Maker's Mark and Jim Beam fans are saying wait a minute, don't change my American brand. I'll tell you what if anything changes because of this big Japanese deal after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: The backlash has begun. Jim Beam owned by the Japanese? Maker's Mark, too?
Well, the owner of the classic American bourbon and whiskey is selling the company to a Japanese firm.
Let's bring in CNN's chief business correspondent Christine Romans.
Say it ain't so?
ROMANS: It is so. A $16 billion deal. A Japanese company called Suntory is going to buy Jim Beam, lock stock and barrel.
(LAUGHTER)
And we're told that things won't change. It's still going to be based in Deerfield, Illinois. It's going to be American corn and Kentucky bourbon. Don't worry, Carol. The issue here is that for the Japanese with an aging population and a shrinking population for Suntory really to grow and expand, it is bullish on American bourbon. The world is drinking this stuff and they want it. They want it made like it is. And they want it made in the USA.
But this is what you're hearing, the backlash from the Jim Beam fans on the Facebook page, already, from John Heart. "Your whole brand is built around American tradition. Now you sell out to Japanese. Nothing is sacred. Will be changing the label to ready Tokyo straight bourbon whiskey?"
And from Mike Bracket, "Are you nuts? So sad so hear Jim Beam sold out to a Japanese company. So much for American loyalty. Good-bye Jim, hello, Jack." Jack Daniels we're assuming.
So look, Carol, the company a couple of years ago I think was toying with maybe dropping the alcohol content in Maker's Mark because there was such demand for the product and people went crazy, right. They didn't change a thing. People who drink these products, they like them exactly as they are. That's one of the reasons why Suntory see such profit in buying Jim Beam -- Carol.
COSTELLO: OK. We'll keep our fingers crossed that all will remain kind of, sort of the same but not really, right?
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: Yes.
ROMANS: Not really.
COSTELLO: Yes. Christine Romans, thanks so much.
ROMANS: You're welcome.
COSTELLO: Checking our top stories at 27 minutes past the hour.
A horror story unfolded right before the eyes of movie goers in Florida. When it was over, 43-year-old Chad Oulson lay dead and his wife Nicole wounded in a shooting prompted by an argument over texting. Retired Tampa Police Officer Curtis Reeves is facing second- degree murder charges. He's set to appear in court later this afternoon.
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie will have the eyes of the nation on him again when he gives his State of the State address this afternoon. Christie is expected to address two controversies that just recently popped up. One accuses his administration of jamming up traffic on the nation's busiest bridge in a political retaliation attack. The other an accusation he misused Superstorm Sandy relief funds to make himself look good.
CNN will carry his address live at 3:00 p.m. Eastern.
Despite several days of bad publicity, claims he's a bully and questions about his political future, Chris Christie seems to be doing just fine in the minds of voters across the country. That's according to a new Pew Poll where 60 percent say their opinion of Christie has not changed over the past few days, 16 percent say their opinion is less favorable while 6 percent say it is more favorable.
That news comes, as I said, Christie is prepared to deliver his State of the State address later today.
Our chief national correspondent John King joins me now.
So, John, it just makes you ask the question, does anyone really care about these controversies?
JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it depends on your perspective, Carol. You can look at those poll numbers and say well, he took a relatively minor hit. So he's going to weather this storm. And you can look at those poll numbers and say, after just a few days, 16 percent say they view him less favorably. If that continues he's in trouble. That's why today's speech is important.
Look, these investigations are going to go on for months. The questions are going to go on for some time. But Governor Christie has to address the specifics of the controversy. And more broadly most Republicans and smart crisis management would tell you address in some way this whole question of the culture of leadership.
Is he somebody who, whether directly or not, whether intentionally or not, has created a climate where his top aides think that's what the boss wanted. If you cross the boss, we're going to punish you. Because, you know, Americans want a tough president. They don't mind hardball politics, but they don't want a mean spirited petty president.
And New Jersey doesn't want a mean spirited governor. So it's a challenge for this governor today. Could also be an opportunity, though. Carol.
This State of the State address is going to get more attention than the other 49 governors when they give theirs. So when he talks about education reform, when he talks about property tax relief, he does have a chance here to laud his agenda if, if he can within, you know, a couple of months, put these scandal questions in the rearview mirror.
COSTELLO: Well, if -- if he does address the scandal, I expect that he will address these scandals.
KING: Right.
COSTELLO: Do you think his tone will be combative?
KING: No. His tone will be apologetic.
