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Juror 8: "I think He's Guilty of Murder"; NFL's Growing Image Problem; Unconscious Baby Saved in Highway Rescue; Christie Passes on Dinner with Obama; Deciding which Flights are Delayed and Why; Michelle Obama on "The Tonight Show"
Aired February 21, 2014 - 10:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thanks so much for joining me.
Wild, closed-door discussions, shouting, that's how juror number eight describes the tension during the deliberations in the "Loud Music" murder trial of Michael Dunn. Now that juror is speaking exclusively to CNN. Alina Machado has more for you.
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CRESHUNA MILES, JUROR 8, DUNN MURDER TRIAL: I never thought about -- this is a black kid, this is a white because that was -- that wasn't the case.
ALINA MACHADO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So people who say you know here is another white guy who got away with shooting and killing a black kid, what would you tell them?
MILES: I would tell them that they really should (inaudible) based on the law.
MACHADO: Creshuna Miles is setting the record straight.
MILES: I just wanted to bring justice to whoever it was.
MACHADO (voice over): The 21-year-old was juror number 8 in the Michael Dunn trial. She sat down exclusively with CNN to talk about the case and the heated deliberations.
(on camera): What was it like inside that deliberations room?
MILES: It was wild.
MACHADO: Wild as --
MILES: Like, it was shouting. There was a lot of yelling.
MACHADO (voice over): Miles even shared her impressions about Michael Dunn and explained the partial verdict the jury returned.
(on camera): What did you think of Michael Dunn? MILES: I honestly think he was a good guy. I think he's a good guy. I don't think he hates everybody. I don't think he walks around wanting to shoot everybody. I think that he made bad decisions.
MACHADO: You still think he's guilty of murder, though?
MILES: Yes. I really think he's guilty of murder but not the guilty as charged.
MACHADO: First degree? You don't think he's guilty of first degree?
MILES: I think he's guilty of second degree.
MACHADO: How difficult was it for you to come back into that courtroom knowing that Jordan Davis' parents were there and that you couldn't agree on a charge related to his death?
MILES: It was -- we were confident and cool with it but when you (inaudible) back, we got really nervous because we didn't know if this was going to throw out the whole case or he's going to retrial or is the court satisfied with just what happened? Is she going to do more? Is Jordan ever going to get justice?
We did not know. And walking back into there, I got so nervous because I'm just like, what do we -- what if we completely messed up.
MACHADO: Do you feel like you messed up? Do you feel like the jury messed up?
MILES: No. I feel like we did what we was supposed to.
MACHADO: What would you tell Jordan's family?
MILES: I would tell them that, from my end, I tried. I really did try. I tried to fight for their son. I saw his dad's face when we were on the stand. And I know it hurts. And it's like, oh, you have this wound and then somebody slices it open again because they have to go through the whole process all over again.
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MACHADO: Now, if there is a retrial, Miles says she hopes the jury in that case will be able to agree on the murder charge and come with a verdict -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Alina Machado reporting live for us, thanks so much.
Despite unprecedented popularity in revenues the NFL has a major image problem this morning. The league's reputation is becoming battered and bruised. A star running back accused of beating his fiancee unconscious at a New Jersey casino. A former all pro safety suspected of raping at least eight women in five states.
Andy Scholes is here now. Andy, toss in the bullying scandal and the concussion scandal and the NFL has got a mess. ANDY SCHOLES, BLEACHER REPORT: Yes, they certainly do Carol. You know many thought last off season PR wise was the worst ever for the NFL. 31 players from 19 different teams were arrested for a variety of offenses. Now the most notable of course was Aaron Hernandez being arrested for murder. Now the NFL continues to try to clean up their image but this off season already off to a pretty rough start.
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SCHOLES: The video is jarring. Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice caught on tape dragging his seemingly unconscious fiancee out of an elevator. TMZ says the shocking footage shows the aftermath of a fight between the couple last week inside an Atlantic City casino.
According to police, Rice and his fiancee both struck each other; Rice's blow knocking Janay Palmer out cold. Both have pleaded not guilty to simple assault charges. The Baltimore Ravens are reviewing their disciplinary options and released a statement to CNN that reads in part, "We have seen the video. This is a serious matter and we are currently gathering more information."
And a former NFL player also finding himself in legal trouble. Yesterday NFL Network analyst Darren Sharper pleaded not guilty to charges of rape in a Los Angeles court. According to an affidavit Sharper allegedly drugged two women before raping them. Sharper is now under investigation in five states in connection with a total of eight rape cases according to authorities in both Los Angeles and Miami. This is the latest in a seemingly endless string of high- profile arrests this year of both current and retired NFL players.
LZ GRANDERSON, ESPN SENIOR WRITER, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: When you think about the fact that you've had these recent incidents of domestic violence or these accusations of domestic violence we do have high- profile crimes that have occurred when we have this history in terms of medical history that's questionable and some of the other same things that impact the game, you know like possible addiction to painkillers and things like that, then, yes, absolutely the NFL does have a bit of an image problem. Except it's still the most popular sport in the country.
SCHOLES: Arrests numbers for active players skyrocketed in the 2013 off season up 75 percent from the year before. Those arrests included Aaron Hernandez who was charged with the murder and the shooting death of a friend. He's also under investigation for a separate case of double murder.
Yesterday at the NFL Combine, Miami Dolphins' head coach Joe Philbin face a barrage of questions stemming from the NFL's most recent investigation in the bullying allegations.
JOE PHILBIN, MIAMI DOLPHINS, HEAD COACH: Some of the facts, the behavior, the language that was outlined in the report is inappropriate and it's unacceptable.
SCHOLES: The report released last week concluded that Jonathan Martin was taunted and ridiculed almost daily by fellow player Richie Incognito. Martin claim Incognito who was suspended by the team used racial slurs and physically threatened him the team has since fired its offensive line coach and head trainer.
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SCHOLES: And even though we continue to hear about players getting in trouble all the time, it should be noted Carol that NFL players, according to a study actually are arrested 75 percent less than men age 22 to 34 in the general population. We just hear about it.
COSTELLO: But that doesn't make it much better.
SCHOLES: It doesn't feel any better if we just always hear about stories (ph).
COSTELLO: So is the NFL planning to do something about at least the perception of this?
SCHOLES: Well, you know Roger Goodell he's really started to come down hard on players that you know get arrested in and end up getting in trouble with the law. The suspensions have been increased and increased. But it's hard to say if they can ever do anything that will really put a stop these players in the off season just getting in trouble.
COSTELLO: Andy Scholes thanks so much.
Two Florida women making their mark as they save the life of a baby on the side of the road. With her 5-month-old nephew dying in her arms, Pamela Rauseo jumped from her car, screamed for help and frantically started giving the infant who had turned blue CPR. Fighting tears, the aunt and a good Samaritan named Lucila got the baby breathing again.
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LUCILA GODOY, ADMINISTERED CPR TO 5-MONTH OLD: All of a sudden I see her and she's screaming and you know she's holding the baby and she's putting it up and down. Like knowing what you know she was desperate. I just stopped the car and jumped out of the car. And I asked her what was going on and we tried to start working as a team at that time when I see it. And we start doing CPR to the baby and the police officer help with the chest compressions and the baby finally started breathing.
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COSTELLO: A local hospital says the boy is currently in stable condition.
Still to come in the NEWSROOM, Chris Christie ripped by fellow Republicans for getting too chummy with the President. He broke ranks then but you won't break bread now. We'll talk about that next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COSTELLO: Here's another reminder that 2016 and the presidential race is coming into view. Barack Obama and Chris Christie are apparently BFFs no more. You may remember, the New Jersey governor took some heat from fellow Republicans for embracing the Democrat and praising his help in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Times have changed. Christie is now turning down an invitation to break bread at the White House.
Mark Preston is our political director. He's here with more. Good morning.
MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Good morning Carol. No hugs between Chris Christie and Barack Obama. You're right. He was criticized back in 2012 right before the November elections. Our viewers will remember, Chris Christie, didn't quite hug President Obama but he gave him a very firm handshake when President Obama came up to New Jersey that was devastated by Hurricane Sandy.
A lot of Republicans were upset. They said that that hurt Mitt Romney just, you know, two weeks before the November elections. Chris Christie was unapologetic about that. In fact, Mitt Romney, too, was not critical of Chris Christie for doing so.
But Chris Christie coming to town might have actually even arrived here in town in Washington. All the governors from across the country are coming here for four days for policy meetings and political meetings.
On Sunday they are going to be breaking bread with President Obama. Chris Christie will not be breaking bread. He's actually heading back to New Jersey. He's going back for his daughter's 18th birthday.
So he's going to score some points for being father of the year in some way, shape, or form. He's also going to go back and work on his speech because he has to deliver his state of the budget speech as well. So he's able to get out that way.
But in political terms, a very smart move for Chris Christie not going to the White House. As you said, he himself is looking at running for president, Carol. Chris Christie not going to the White House is probably a smart move.
COSTELLO: Mark Preston, reporting live for us from Washington. Thank you.
Still to come in the NEWSROOM, it is practically rite of passage sitting in a crowd terminal because your flight got delayed. But who decides who stays and who flies? The answer might surprise you.
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COSTELLO: More than 500 flights across the country have already been canceled today. Nearly 2,000 others delayed as wet winter weather blasts much of the country. But how does an airline decide when a delay becomes a cancellation and completely ruin your plan? "Time" magazine searched for the answer and found it in this week's cover story "Airport Confidential".
Joining us to discuss this, the article's author, Bill Saporito -- welcome Bill.
BILL SAPORITO, "TIME" MAGAZINE: Good morning.
COSTELLO: Tell us about the program each airline has that makes the delay or cancellation decision. You say America nicknamed theirs the cancelator.
SAPORITO: Yes they did because in any event of a storm, you need to come up with a rationale for canceling flights. And American's includes, for instance, where are my crews, where are my planes, how do I preserve enough of the schedule and enough of my revenue and make it all work. And that's what the cancelator does because we need to cancel some flights.
COSTELLO: So it's more than the weather. It's complicated?
SAPORITO: Yes. Think of this as an equation with so many variables in it. In fact I talked to one consultant who said you can't solve for everything. If you solve for the crew, you can't necessarily solve for the planes. They need maintenance, regular maintenance checks and you have to abide by the schedule.
And then what about your passengers, you know? Some of them are on very high-priced tickets; some are on lower-priced tickets. So you want to preserve, take care of your best customers, too.
COSTELLO: Well, let's talk about that because all flights are not created equal and it has nothing to do with the number of crew available or the weather.
SAPORITO: Well, yes, it does. It's sort of a balancing act but if you weigh things, then you might say that a plane full of business travelers who are then connecting somewhere is much more valuable than a plane full of vacationers who are going to be terminators. That's a term I heard.
If they are not going on anywhere, you can more safely cancel their flight.
COSTELLO: Why can you more safely cancel their flight? Because they are not repeat customers?
SAPORITO: Well, everyone is a repeat customer. And everyone loses in this. I lost on the way back -- my flight was canceled. So it's a question of how do I rationalize it? How do I keep the planes where I need them and the crews where I need them and the most important passengers in terms of are they connecting, are they going internationally? These things all factor in.
For instance an international flight is much less likely to be canceled than a domestic flight. A flight going hub to hub, where they go out to service -- that can be canceled more easily because there's more re-accommodations and re-accom is a term you hear a lot. COSTELLO: You also write that more flights have been canceled this year than any other year since 1987. Why is that?
SAPORITO: Well, we've had this massive weather that's sent storms from Dallas all the way back up the coast. The other issue here is that this is a system that's designed to fail. OK? It's scheduled for blue sky days, for the most part, so when you get a thunderstorm in O'Hare or Dallas or Newark, it radiates the problem throughout the system. So we have a very clanky system to begin with and when it goes off the rails, it really goes completely off.
Bill Saporito, thanks you so much; he's the managing editor of "Time" magazine. Time.com if you want to read more. Thanks so much Bill.
SAPORITO: Thank you.
COSTELLO: Michelle Obama stopped by the new "Tonight Show" last night to promote her causes, joked about her husband's cooking and of course, the topic of Obamacare came up.
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JIMMY FALLON, TALK SHOW HOST: While you're here I have to talk to you. I want to talk to you about the Affordable Care Act. In March is there a deadline?
MICHELLE OBAMA, FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: The end of March. Absolutely. Yes, there is.
FALLON: Why -- because a lot of young people watch this show. Would you like to tell me -- a lot of people don't have money to spend on this.
OBAMA: Well, thanks to the Affordable Care Act, young people can stay on their parents' insurance until they are 26. But once they hit 26, they are on their own. And a lot of young people think they are invincible but the truth is young people are knuckle heads. You know, they are the one who are cooking for the first time and slice their finger open. They are dancing on the bar stool, they are --
FALLON: Young people.
OBAMA: Yes. The young people.
FALLON: I would never do both of those things. No. No. No.
OBAMA: But while young people think they are invincible, they are not. You know, life happens. And as a mother -- and I know there are a lot of moms out there who worry that their kids are going to, you know, have a terrible accident, get a bad diagnosis and they won't have health care. And before, they couldn't get it because they couldn't afford it and now young people can get insurance for as little as $50 a month less than the cost of gym shoes.
And you know, for the moms and dads who are out there worried about their kids, we want you to encourage your kids to sign up for that peace of mind that we all look for.
FALLON: Healthcare.gov is the website, if you haven't read about it in the news or anything. You'd know -- it's up and running and I'm happy to say --
OBAMA: It's working.
FALLON: It's working now. Yes.
OBAMA: It's working. It's working.
FALLON: It's so much better when it's working.
OBAMA: It helps. That helps.
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COSTELLO: First lady had some fun and showed off her acting skills, too, joining in on a skit with two unlikely teenage girls who happened to be Jimmy Fallon and Will Ferrell.
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FALLON: Let's have a face-off.
OK. Moving on, Mrs. Obama --
OBAMA: Oh, please call me Michelle.
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COSTELLO: You should watch it. It's really funny. The first lady joining U2, Will Smith, and Lady Gaga as some of the A-List guest visiting Fallon during his first week on "The Tonight Show".
Thank you for joining me today. I'm Carol Costello.
@THIS HOUR with Berman and Michaela, after a break.
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