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Lenient Rape Sentence Ignites Outrage; Terrorist Leader Vows to Sell 223 Girls

Aired May 05, 2014 - 09:30   ET

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

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: The search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 is now wrapping up its second month and entering a new stage that may seem even more hopeless to some. This week search leaders from Australia, China and Malaysia will finalize plans for expanding the search.

But this much they do know. The new search area will mushroom in size and require a detailed mapping of the ocean floor. That task is all the more daunting because the area is unchartered and no one even knows how deep it is.

So let's bring in CNN aviation analyst, Mary Schiavo, and safety analyst David Soucie.

Welcome to both of you. OK, so this -- thanks for being here.

So, David, this does sound hopeless. The search area may mushroom in size?

DAVID SOUCIE, CNN SAFETY ANALYST: Well, but you've got to understand, they're also retooling. There is going to be different tools used. And they're still going to focus around those pings for a while. Remember, to the north it's much deeper. The Bluefin-21, which is what they've been using all along, can't go to those depths. So they've already brought it back to port, the Ocean Shield back at port. The Bluefin is back at port.

They are meeting now to decide what will -- what they specifically do. I suspect what they'll do is retool, they'll get the REMUS 6000, which is what's planned to be out there from what I understand. And it can go down to 6,000 meters. So now they're going to look to the north where those pings were, which I thought was the best opportunity, actually, because they had the ping for two hours straight up there.

So I think that's a much more likely place to find the aircraft and just need the right tool.

COSTELLO: Well, let's talk about the right tool.

So, Mary, David mentioned one of them. But Australia has to find private companies to -- and that costs money. So how easy will that be to get these right tools?

MARY SCHIAVO, CNN AVIATION ANALYST: Well, it could be very difficult and that's why I think it's very good that they met today to regroup and decide and to really plan because going forward, it's going to take a very long time. I think it was right to put the Bluefin in when they did because they thought they had the location and there was no reason to wait. They thought that was the tool.

But now they know it's not, now they know it's going to be a long haul. And in addition to meeting about the long-range plan and a strategy and what equipment they need, they undoubtedly talked financing. And that's going to be difficult. Because these are private assets, a lot of them.

COSTELLO: Well, the other thing they're going to do is they're going to review whether this satellite information has been accurately interpreted, which is kind of scary too, David.

SOUCIE: Yes. It's mostly to refine again where on that arc they should be. They're very confident about the fact that it's on that arc. And they should be. The information that came out in the preliminary report shows it's a 40-degree angle from wherever that last ping was to the satellite. So that's very definitive.

Before they were saying, well, we're not sure where it started, where we ended. We're using Doppler. Science that's never been done before. Well, the angle to a satellite is not arguable. So we know that it is on that arc somewhere, which is very confident news for me, increased my confidence in the fact that they are looking in the right place.

So to realign it is just mostly about changing the assumptions, how fast is the airplane going, how high was the airplane when it happened. But again, it's just going to take some more time.

COSTELLO: OK. So, Mary, let's say they refine this data. They still don't know what's under that particular area of water, because it's unchartered territory. How difficult will it be for them to navigate that?

SCHIAVO: Well, it could be very difficult, which is why they want different assets. The Bluefin had an operational depth level of about 2.8 miles, 2.5 miles, depending on how refined they wanted the images. And so because they know it could be much deeper than that, that's why they have to ask for additional resources, additional equipment, too. And that equipment is spread around the world, and many different, you know, countries, different companies.

It can be private equipment, as well, which because it is unknown, they want to go down this time with the absolute best stuff, the stuff that can go the deepest parts of the ocean. So it's going to take a while. And it is a really long haul process. Now it can be two or three months before they're back under water.

COSTELLO: Oh, wow. And, of course, it could be years before they find this plane. I mean, in all honesty, right?

SOUCIE: It could be. Could be. Yes.

COSTELLO: I know you have more. SOUCIE: I know.

COSTELLO: You're more hopeful than I am and you're the expert. So I'm going to go with you, David Soucie.

Mary Schiavo, thanks to you, too.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, one year later after escaping from Cleveland's house of horror, Michelle Knight is talking about how she ended up there.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR, AC 360: What did he tell you to get you inside the house?

MICHELLE KNIGHT, KIDNAPPING SURVIVOR: In the car, he said that he had puppies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: More of the interview, more of Michelle Knight's interview with Anderson Cooper, just ahead. Plus, she has adopted a new name, too. She's going to tell you why, next. Stick with innovation.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Tomorrow marks one year since three women made their miraculous escape from nearly a decade of captivity in a Cleveland house. Now one of the kidnapped survivors has a new name and a new book.

Thirty-three-year-old Michelle Knight now goes by Lilly Rose Lee. She was the first woman kidnapped by Ariel Castro and held for more than 10 years. Her new memoir "Finding Me: A Decade of Darkness, A Life Reclaimed" is out tomorrow. She sat down with CNN's Anderson Cooper to talk about those horrible years and how she's trying to build a new life.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: What did he tell you to get you inside the house?

KNIGHT: In the car, he said that he had puppies. So when we got, like, a quarter down the road, he's like, that's my van right there. And it says "Puppies for Free." I didn't really think anything of it until, you know, we got into the house fully. That's when it dawned on me that this was a mistake to get in this car.

COOPER (voice-over): That was August 23rd, 2002. 21-year-old Michelle Knight had been approached by Ariel Castro, the father of one of her friends. He'd offered her a ride but said he had to pick up something on his way at his house on Seymour Avenue.

(On camera): You knew by then this is wrong. KNIGHT: Yes. And then I end up being trapped in a small room. A small, pink room. That's where he proceeded to tie me up like a fish and put me on the wall.

COOPER: When you say tie you up like a fish, what do you mean?

KNIGHT: My legs and hands were bound like this. And I was that far from the floor.

COOPER (voice-over): Michelle, who is later joined by other kidnapped victims, Amanda Berry and Gina DeJesus, would spend more than 10 years tortured inside that house of horrors, often left without food, beaten and raped.

(On camera): You know, people who haven't been through this situation think, oh, I would try to escape, I would do this, I would do that. But in reality, very quickly, your mind starts to adapt to your new environment.

KNIGHT: Yes.

COOPER: Can you explain that?

KNIGHT: What happens is hard at first. You don't really want to adapt to it. But then you find yourself saying, "Why not? I'm here, just let him get it over with."

COOPER (voice-over): But one year ago, the women were freed when Amanda Berry seized an opportunity and escaped from the house. She ran across the street and neighbors helped her call 911.

AMANDA BERRY, KIDNAP VICTIM: I've been kidnapped, and I've been missing for 10 years, and I'm here, I'm free now.

COOPER: All three women were rescued. Their tormentor was arrested and pleaded guilty to 937 counts, including kidnapping, rape and assault. At his sentencing, Michelle Knight bravely faced her captor in court.

KNIGHT: From this moment on, I will not let you define me or affect who I am.

COOPER: He was sentenced to life in prison without parole, plus 1,000 years. Days later, that house of horrors was torn to the ground.

Just months later, the man who had kidnapped and held captive three women was found dead in his jail cell. He'd had hanged himself with one of his bed sheets.

Michelle Knight is trying to move ahead with her life. She has changed her name, and is focusing on new beginnings.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Anderson Cooper's two-part interview with Michelle Knight airs tonight and tomorrow on "AC 360," that's at 8:00 p.m. Eastern only on CNN.

I'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Checking some top stories at 47 minutes past the hour.

An Islamist militant group is claiming responsibility for kidnapping more than 200 school girls in Nigeria. And a man who says he's the leader of Boko Haram says he will sell the girls. He made that threat in a nearly hour-long video just out today. At least 223 girls are still being held captive after last month's abduction; 53 others managed to escape.

The CEO of Target is out. Gregg Steinhafel has left the company effective immediately in the wake of last year's massive data breach where the credit card numbers and other crucial information from as many as 110 million customers were stolen. It was possibly the biggest hack of its kind in history, and cost the company $61 million.

At least one person has been killed by a fast-moving wildfire in Oklahoma. The fire in the town of Guthrie was started as a controlled burn. It quickly spread yesterday and destroyed at least 20 homes. Officials say the fire is being fueled by strong winds and dry temperatures. An estimated 4,000 acres has been scorched.

In Texas, a rape case is igniting outrage, not only for the leniency shown to the rapist, but for the judge's comments that seem to shift blame to the victim. Police say Sir Young admitted to raping a 14- year-old high school classmate when he was 18 -- legally an adult.

He faced up to 20 years in prison, but instead received a veritable slap on the wrist -- 45 days in jail and probation that was deferred. And that's not all. The judge explained the light sentence by slamming the young victim, saying she was sexually active and, quote, "not the victim she claimed to be". This morning we heard from the rapist's attorney who says the light sentence is warranted.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCOTTIE ALLEN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY FOR SIR YOUNG: He had had previous discussions with her about having sex, and she had agreed to that. She just didn't want to have sex on the school premises. Immediately upon making this bad judgment, he admitted that he proceeded over her objections to stop. And he admitted that to the police.

We don't think that he qualifies as your typical sex offender. This is not somebody who has preyed on some young kids or unsuspecting people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Bad judgment, he says Nick Valencia.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Good morning, Carol. An admitted rapist and an unheard of sentence -- this morning rape victims advocates are disturbed and the victim is telling the media that she feels let down by the judge's decision.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VALENCIA: A Dallas district judge is under fire this morning after handing down what some say is an inappropriately light sentence in a rape case. 20-year-old Sir Young pleaded guilty to raping his classmate in a room Booker T. Washington High School in 2011. He faced up to 20 years in jail but was instead sentenced to five years of probation and a 45-day stint in jail.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're certainly concerned about the message that is being sent to victims of sexual assault in that they will feel safe in coming forward and reporting these crimes.

VALENCIA: But it wasn't just the sentence that shocked the community. Judge Jeanine Howard publicly implied the 14-year-old victim was promiscuous and not the victim she claimed to be. Howard told the Dallas Morning News, she based the sentence in part on medical records which she says indicated the girl had three sexual partners and had given birth to a baby.

She stands by her ruling telling the paper that Young was not your typical sex offender. The victim denies the claims and has said since the verdict she regrets coming forward about the rape.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was shocked that a judge, someone that I trusted with this case, would go behind my back and make these allegations that she knows nothing about.

VALENCIA: Adding to the firestorm was another condition that stunned rape advocates. Young was ordered to serve 250 hours of community service at a rape crisis center. A condition that changed after the center said he was not welcome there.

ROBBIE VILLAREAL, DALLAS RAPE CRISIS CENTER: Just having a criminal defendant in the office could be a triggering effect for many of our clients. It's just not appropriate.

VALENCIA: Following public backlash, Howard recused herself from the case. A new judge will oversee the case moving forward including a motion filed by prosecutors to add more restrictive requirements to his probation and Young's 45-day jail sentence.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VALENCIA: And earlier this morning, his defense attorney told CNN that it wasn't just a slap on the wrist that his defendant got. In fact, he went on to say that his defendant Sir Young had a promising future and now has a difficult life ahead. For the judge's part, she's defending her decision. She's saying that it's not her job to make people happy. It's her job to defend the constitution -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Nick Valencia, many thanks. Let's talk more about this. Jean Casarez covers all things legal at CNN. She's with me now.

And the judge brought the victim's past into this. That's not supposed to happen.

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN LEGAL CORRESPONDENT: Isn't that's interesting? You know, I'm licensed in Texas. And so Texas has a rape shield law which means that the past sexual history of a victim cannot come into a current trial. Most states have it. But I pulled the law because I love to go from the law. There are exceptions to this if it is in evidence.

The judge said it is in evidence when she said that she had sex with two other people and I guess had a baby. We don't know how it's in evidence. But let's look at the issue. The issue is not whether he's guilty. He pleaded guilty to rape. He's guilty of rape. He's going to be a registered sex offender. 25 conditions here on his probation.

The issue is what the judge said and how she said it and then also what his sentence was. How that was fashioned. Those are the real issues here. Why the judge said what she said, she must have a reason. It came across very wrong and maybe that's why she's recused herself from the case.

COSTELLO: I don't care how many times this young girl had sex or if she had --

CASAREZ: It doesn't matter.

COSTELLO: She's 14 years old at the time.

CASAREZ: Right.

COSTELLO: So could she be a troubled young girl?

CASAREZ: But she said it was -- she said it was in evidence. We don't know how it was in evidence. I can think of some hypotheticals which I won't say because you don't know. The defense can ask it to be brought into evidence. She can ask it to be brought into evidence. There are rape kits that are done. DNA can be found. So we don't know. But I think the judge felt she could mention it because it was in evidence in some form or fashion.

COSTELLO: Ok. Well, let me run this by you because the defense attorney said that this young man had talked to this girl about having sex but she didn't want to have sex on school property supposedly --

CASAREZ: Right.

COSTELLO: -- so they went off school property where he proceeded to rape her. Perhaps that's what the judge meant. The girl talked to the defendant about having sex. I don't know. It just seems outrageous to me.

The other outrageous part of this story is he was sentenced to community service at a rape crisis center. Does that happen often? CASAREZ: I've never heard of it. But the judge explained she wanted him to sweep the floors and clean the toilets, not attend the seminars. You know, what is interesting, there are 25 conditions of probation here. He has to register as a sex offender immediately when he comes out of his 45 days. He could be a registered sex offender for life.

There are consequences to that. For the next five years he has to go to counseling through the registered sex offender treatment providers. There are things that he has to do. In the next five years if he gets into any trouble with the law, he's going to be in prison for a long time.

COSTELLO: Ok. So in your estimation, was this sentence light, normal, reasoned, wrong?

CASAREZ: I don't know all of the facts. I don't know all the facts. And that sometimes we read the headlines. The headlines are one thing. And there are things in this case that are just absolutely unbelievable -- words that were said by the judge.

But if you look at the facts, the judge tried to fashion a sentence that was fair. I don't know what fair was. We do know though he pleaded guilty to rape. He's a rapist. He'll be a registered sex offender possibly for his whole life.

COSTELLO: Jean Casarez, thanks so much. We appreciate it.

Next hour of CNN NEWSROOM after a break.

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