Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Miracle on Hudson Remembered; Lawmaker Proposes Execution by Firing Squad

Aired January 15, 2014 - 15:00   ET

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

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: And we continue on hour two. I'm Brooke Baldwin. Thank you so much for watching. You know right now it's still not clear if a 12-year-old boy will face adult charges for what happened at this school campus in Roswell, New Mexico Tuesday. CNN is not naming him, but this school, Barindo Middle School, is closed today. The police tape marks campus.

It was Tuesday morning and all of 10 seconds this young boy allegedly shot two students and then surrendered. At this hour, we may learn more about a motive and what led to this attack. New Mexico State Police are holding a news conference in just about a half-hour from now. They have revealed the boy suspect may have told others to stay away.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE KASSETAS, NEW MEXICO STATE POLICE CHIEF: Preliminary information that possibly some of the students were warned by the individual or the suspect prior to the shooting not to go to school. We have not corroborated that yet. I do not have a definitive answer as to whether that happened or not, but we will certainly be looking into that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So, as we await this news conference, Stephanie Elam is there for us in Roswell with more.

And, Stephanie, it's like these days teachers are not just teaching. They are intervening in horrendous incidents like these. Tell me about the teacher who stepped in.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's true, Brooke.

And you're looking at a case where these teachers, the staff members here did have active shooter training and it seemed that may have come into play with what happened here yesterday morning. One teacher, we understand, an eighth grade social studies teacher, when he saw the gunman, this young gunman come into the gym, confronted him and had him put his gun down and then got the child up against the wall.

When you think about what he did there, it could have really have had an impact, because we know that two students were injured, one now unstable -- one continuing to be in critical condition after he was shot in the face and the neck. But, if he was not stopped, this young shooter, it could have been so much worse, Brooke.

BALDWIN: We are standing by for that news conference in half-an-hour. Stephanie, thank goodness for that teacher and so many others there in Roswell. Stephanie Elam, thank you.

It's hard to believe, but five years ago today the world first saw this picture. You remember this? Taken in the moments after U.S. Airways Flight 1549 made that miraculous landing on the Hudson River.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news story right here in "THE SITUATION ROOM."

A U.S. Airways plane, you see it right there. It's in the Hudson River. It's an Airbus A-320, 135 people, we're told, on board. This is U.S. Airways Flight 1549 from La Guardia in New York City, scheduled to go to Charlotte, North Carolina.

And we're told shortly, after takeoff, it went into the Hudson River, which is not very far away, as you know, from La Guardia Airport. This is right off of Manhattan. And people all over Manhattan were watching this plane go into the water shortly after taking off from La Guardia.

We have no indications of injuries or anything along those lines, although, if you take a look at the pictures, you see lots -- lots of boats already and ferries all around that plane. You can see much of the plane still above the water, but some of it beginning to go underneath.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Well, here's a name you definitely know how. Captain Sully Sullenberger five years ago doing the incredible, safely landing this plane after a flock of geese jammed the plane's engines.

And today many of the passengers gathered in New York at the exact hour the plane landed. Captain Sully took to the podium.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAPT. CHESLEY "SULLY" SULLENBERGER III, PILOT: We have much to be thankful for. Much was saved that day. And it's the efforts not only of the crew and the rescuers and the first-responders that everyone survived. Had even one person not survived, I personally couldn't have celebrated any of this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Joining me now, two passengers who were on board that plane, Barry Leonard and Beth McHugh.

Barry and Beth, welcome to you.

BETH MCHUGH, PASSENGER: Thank you. BALDWIN: Barry to you first, since we see you there in New York.

Five years ago today, there you were on the plane and you're hearing this voice come over the loudspeaker. This is the captain, brace for impact. Since then, I have to imagine your priorities have changed. Can you give me example number one of that?

BARRY LEONARD, PASSENGER: Yes.

In August of this year, my son and I summited Kilimanjaro. He also has his own bucket list. So, and then in the end of November of this year, my daughter and I walked part of the Camino de Santiago in Spain. We walked from sunrise to sunset with a fullback pack, 20 miles a day.

BALDWIN: Wow. Congratulations to you, by the way. Just quickly, how do you feel five years later? Do you feel like this perspective, this bucket list, has it faded any for you, Barry?

(CROSSTALK)

LEONARD: No. It's intensified actually.

There's many more things we want to do. My family plans to visit India this year to visit with the Dalai Lama and later on in the year we want to summit the highest mountain in Antarctica and also in Australia.

BALDWIN: Wow.

Beth, I know you are on the phone with me from Charlotte. And just quickly, set the scene for me, because I understand, first of all, a lot of people are wondering where the plane is. It's actually in a museum, correct me if I'm wrong, in Charlotte.

Are you near the plane?

MCHUGH: I am right here in the Carolinas Aviation Museum right now, yes, and a few passengers will be with me and we are going to get back on 20 after 3:00. And we're going to sit in the seats at the exact time, 3:31, that the plane would have crashed and that the plane did crash into the Hudson.

BALDWIN: Did crash. Everyone survived.

How has your life changed in the last five years?

MCHUGH: Well, I am more grateful for everything, for every day.

But the most -- I actually didn't have a bucket list like Barry before the plane crashed and the first thing I did on my bucket list I think was to retire. I waited a year and then I retired from working. I figured that working too many hours a day was not the way I wanted to spend this life I had been given back.

BALDWIN: Good for you. It's something all of us can keep in mind. We weren't on this plane with the two of you, but, Barry, final question. For those of us who have not been in some near disaster, but haven't had to brace for impact, what's your message, Mr. Mounting Mount Kilimanjaro? What's your message for the rest of us?

(LAUGHTER)

LEONARD: Don't wait to do the things that are on your list of things you want to do. And the other thing is, as Beth would say also, is hug those people that are close to you.

BALDWIN: Awesome words. Barry Leonard and Beth McHugh, thank you so much for taking the time with me. Appreciate it.

The only American soldier being held in captivity, Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl, appears in a new video obtained by the U.S. military. The video made by Bergdahl's captors is the first to surface in nearly three years.

CNN's Jim Sciutto broke the story for us.

And, Jim, before we actually get to the content of the video, we just heard from -- we have gotten a statement from Bowe Bergdahl's family. Tell me what they're saying. They are speaking directly to him.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, I will tell you, this family has gone through so much.

Bowe Bergdahl is from Hailey, Idaho. I have actually been there a number of times and my wife is from nearby there. I have driven by the streets which are lined with yellow ribbons and they have been waiting for good new for nearly five years now and they haven't got that good news.

But here's what the family had to say, some that you would expect, but some that is also very touching. They say: "As we have done so many times over the past 4.5 years, we request that his captors to release him safely so that our only son can be reunited with his mother and father."

But they add something intended for Bowe as well: "Bowe, if you see this, continue to remain strong through patience. Your endurance will carry you to the finish line. Breathe."

Just trying to get a message to him somehow. The last time a video was released was February 2011. In those videos, his health looked pretty good in light of how much time he has been in captivity. I am told by officials who have seen this video that his health has shown to be deteriorating. It's what you would expect after five years in captivity.

The other thing I am told about the video is that it has a time reference in there to December 14 last month. It just gives us a sense that he was alive at least until a month ago. And with this, then, you have good some news and bad news. The bad news, of course, this is a reminder of how long he has been there and there has no progress in terms of getting him released.

The good news is that we at least know that last month he was still alive. That's something.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: Jim, let me jump in. What is the Pentagon doing to bring him home so they can take all those yellow ribbons down finally?

SCIUTTO: Well, they're telling me -- and I spoke to them again today -- they are doing everything they can.

One part of the negotiation that has been under way for some time is that the network that is holding him, it's the Haqqani Network, it's a Taliban-linked network. It's believed that he is held in Pakistan, although he was captured in Afghanistan. They have asked for the release of five of their fellow fighters who are held in Guantanamo.

That is a price that to this point the U.S. has not been willing to pay and perhaps understandably. There are other parts of the negotiation. Can you trust that if we give what they want, we will get his freedom? These are complicated things. But that has been their demand and their consistent demand for some time.

BALDWIN: I just go back on the one word that his family was passing along to Bowe, breathe.

Jim Sciutto in Washington, Jim, appreciate it.

SCIUTTO: Thank you.

BALDWIN: Coming up next, just into CNN, the Pentagon announcing a cheating scandal in the Air Force. Almost three dozen people caught. We are just getting the details. We will have a live report coming up next.

Also, certainly you know of the dangers of texting and driving. Just don't do it. We will actually show you what happens to the driver of this car who survived now and wants to warn others.

And a state senator proposes using a firing squad to execute prisoners, firing squad.

You will hear why, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Getting some information just into us here at CNN -- 34 Air Force officers on a nuclear team cheated on a key proficiency test. The Air Force secretary says -- and I'm quoting him -- "This was a failure of integrity."

Want to bring in our senior Washington correspondent, Joe Johns.

Joe, what do you know? JOE JOHNS, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Brooke, what we are talking about here is a monthly proficiency test to show the ability of airmen to meet their standard duties dealing with the missile, yes, intercontinental missiles.

In the course of administering these tests, the Air Force says it discovered evidence of cheating on the tests in August and in September. It's called a launch officer proficiency test.

Just a few minutes ago, Debra Lee James, the Air Force secretary, talked about this stuff. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEBRA LEE JAMES, AIR FORCE SECRETARY: And 34 missile launch officers at Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana were involved in the compromise of answers to a launch officer proficiency test.

Now, let me state this a different way. There was cheating that took place with respect to this particular test. Some officers did it. Others apparently knew about it. And it appears that they did nothing or at least not enough to stop it or to report it.

Now, this is absolutely unacceptable behavior. And it is completely contrary to our core values in the Air Force. And, as everybody here knows, the number one core value for us is integrity.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JOHNS: Now, for all things they are saying there, there is a lot they are not saying. It's because the investigation is just beginning. They don't want to go too far.

But this is apparently the largest number of individuals ever who have been found to have engaged in alleged cheating on tests at one time. There is also a separate drug investigation going on. A lot of questions here. The cheating issue apparently has come up at Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana. The authorities are trying to get to the bottom of it, Brooke.

BALDWIN: And 34? Bunch of questions. There could be more. How premeditated was this? Do we know as far as punishment goes anything, Joe?

JOHNS: No. All we know is that there has been decertification, so those 34 apparently are not on the job right now. There a lot of others who still remain on the job and they are not suggesting that they are in a real bad way for personnel at this point, but the investigation continues.

BALDWIN: Joe, thank you very much, Joe Johns in Washington.

To an explosive revelation about the deadly attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi; 15 people helping the FBI in the aftermath of the 2012 attack have since been killed, this finding revealed in the new Senate Intelligence Committee report. And joining me now, host of "THE LEAD" and chief Washington correspondent Jake Tapper.

Jake, I know your show has done so much on Benghazi and getting the new information with the deaths. Suspicious?

JAKE TAPPER, CNN CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: It is certainly suspicious, although the report makes it very clear to state that they don't know that the deaths of these 15 individuals who have been helpful to U.S. or specifically cooperated in this investigation are tied to the investigation into the Benghazi attacks.

It certainly is insecure and unstable in Libya these days, but the report is remarkable if for the only reason that it's bipartisan. It's the Senate Intelligence Committee coming together and signing off on a report that in some ways is very scathing about the State Department not providing enough security for U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and others in Libya at the time, but also debunking a few of the conspiracy theories, including the one that the military could have intervened, but there was a stand-down order.

It is a comprehensive report and they look at all sorts of parts of the controversy, including the White House talking points as well.

BALDWIN: OK. Then toss military intervention out, but one headline I read about is they're saying the attack could have been prevented, yes?

TAPPER: Absolutely. It states very clearly that the attack -- that the incident was preventable.

In a different part of the report, it says -- quote -- "The State Department should have increased its security posture more significantly in Benghazi based on the deteriorating security situation on the ground and the intelligence community threat reporting."

Now, at the end of the report, Democrats and Republicans give up the bipartisan part and they give their different takes on it. The Republicans issue a very scathing review of Charlene Lamb, Pat Kennedy. Those are two State Department officials -- and Secretary of State and possible 2016 presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton, whom they hold them ultimately accountable.

BALDWIN: Jake Tapper, we will be watching "THE LEAD" and I know you will have much more on this.

TAPPER: Much more on this, absolutely.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: Much more. Jake, thank you. See you at the top of the hour.

Coming up next here, a state senator is trying to bring back the firing squad. Is that even legal? How is that ethical? We will discuss with Nancy Grace, see what she has to think about that. We're going to talk to her live next.

Plus, does this file -- file this into the dumb criminal file. See this guy's fall over and over and over again? You have to see this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Listen to this one.

A proposal by a Wyoming lawmaker has a lot of people talking about the death penalty today. Republican state Senator Bruce Burns has introduced a bill proposing using a firing squad to execute inmates, firing squad. He says it would only be backup in case the state runs out of doses of lethal injection. The current backup plan for Wyoming, by the way, is a gas chamber.

The problem is that Wyoming doesn't have one and they would have to build one. So he says a firing squad would just save money and time. Think about that.

HLN host Nancy Grace joins me now.

Nancy, Welcome back.

NANCY GRACE, HOST, "NANCY GRACE": Thank you for inviting me.

BALDWIN: Do you agree with this method, firing squad?

GRACE: There's no pretty way to die. If you agree that a jury should be given the alternative of a death penalty, it ain't no tea party, Brooke.

(CROSSTALK)

GRACE: Here's the thing about lethal injection. It's typically a three-during protocol. It's very, very difficult. People are running out of those drugs and very difficult to do that now.

There's also a fear that lethal injection may at some point be declared cruel and inhuman, and that would make it unconstitutional.

BALDWIN: But then wouldn't a firing quad be just a tad barbaric?

GRACE: In my mind, it would be.

Right now, you have Oklahoma and you have got Utah. Utah has limited their firing squad to people that were sentenced to it before 2004. We are really only talking about Oklahoma that even considers the firing squad right now. This is where Burns is coming from. He's the lawmaker that wants the firing squad back.

In those rare instances -- and I say rare because when you look at the millions of guilty pleas and trials that happen every day in our country, the very rare incident of a death penalty sentence and even rarer is it implemented, you have three choices, firing squad, gas chamber, lethal injection and of course I would not recommend old sparky. (CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: I'm sorry, old sparky? What's that?

GRACE: The electric chair. That's kind of a friendly name. I would under no circumstances recommend we reinstate old sparky. Too many problems.

BALDWIN: No.

GRACE: That leaves you with lethal injection and gas chamber and firing squad.

The argument is that firing squad is quick and easy and it costs about $25,000 to pull it off, even though a bullet costs you 99 cents.

BALDWIN: Hang on. What about states, though? Let's move past the firing squad, because there are states that are experimenting with drugs, like reportedly I was reading in Ohio they're using some kind of drug cocktail that is said to be painful. We have already talked about Wyoming and option two is the gas chamber.

But I have to think there are serious ethical questions about these methods.

GRACE: I think if you are going to have the death penalty, if we all agree that there is going to be the alternative of a death penalty, in my mind, lethal injection is the most humane.

It's not about making the person physically suffer. It's about the death penalty. If we can put a man on the moon, there's got to be a way, even if it brings on more expense to put a person to sleep before they receive the death penalty. How hard can it be? You go under the knife all the time. Juice them up with propofol, for Pete's sake, but why would we want anyone to suffer, even someone that has been convicted of murder?

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: That's why I was asking about the painful possible proposition of the drug cocktail in Ohio. I don't know. I was just curious about your thoughts, but we got them, Nancy Grace. Thank you very much.

GRACE: Thank you.

BALDWIN: Watch Nancy on our sister station HLN each and every weeknight at 8:00 Eastern.

GRACE: Bye, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Coming up next, this amazing video. Take a look. Quick thinking. Home Depot employee jumps into action to save a little baby. We will play that for you.

Also, have you seen this picture? Hmm. "Seinfeld" fans, possible "Seinfeld" reunion, maybe? Jerry and George in front of the iconic diner featured in the show. We will talk live to the young woman who was there in the lucky spot to snap the photo. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Just about the bottom of the hour. I'm Brooke Baldwin.

Jerry Seinfeld, he's up to something. Seinfeld is up to something. And whatever it is, it seems to involve his friends, friends like Larry David, co-creator of "Seinfeld" eponymous sitcom. Spotted slipping out of a diner in Manhattan, this diner. Look familiar? What if we add the bass riff?

You seeing where we are going here with this? If not, let's look again at the photo. It's a photo we showed you before. Look closely. See the two innocuous dudes there walking on in? Yes, that's Jerry Seinfeld and Jason Alexander, AKA George Costanza. The photo was shot on Monday right around the same time that Larry David was lurking around. Hmm.

What's going on here?

With me now from Los Angeles, CNN entertainment commentator Krista Smith and senior West Coast editor of "Vanity Fair" magazine, and from New York, we tracked down Ali Philippides. She is the one who was, I guess, in the right spot at the right time, was the one who snapped the photos outside of the diner on Monday.

So,both of you, welcome.

ALI PHILIPPIDES, SNAPPED PHOTOGRAPH: Hi. Good to be here.

KRISTA SMITH, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Hi, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Ali, first of all, let me just get this out of the way, because this was my first thought, and it's probably the first thought of a lot of people looking at the picture. I saw it, I thought Photoshop.

But, so, you are telling me, this is the real deal?

PHILIPPIDES: It is the real deal. It's the real -- I couldn't believe it myself. But it's the real deal.

BALDWIN: Here you are, a big "Seinfeld" fan. You see them at -- "Seinfeld" fans know the place as Monk's.

Tell me the story behind the photo. What were you doing when you see the two of them walking down?

PHILIPPIDES: Well, I was on my way to work at Goaloop, which is a startup up by Columbia.

And the street was blocked off. So, of course, I kind of took a look around a little bit, and then I saw a film crew, but there was not a crowd around. So, I didn't really think it was a big deal. And as I walked past