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Suspected Benghazi Mastermind Now in U.S.; Political Controversy over Terror Suspect; Toddler Dies inside Hot Carl; World Cup Hits Frenzy Mode in Brazil; Armed U.S. Drones Flying Over Baghdad; Backlash Over Mauled Girl Story; Google Unveils Android Auto And TV

Aired June 28, 2014 - 11:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: We've got lots straight ahead. Thanks so much. You all have had a great morning, a very busy morning. I think the same will be for us. Hey, it's the 11:00 eastern hour, so a little morning, but let's move into midday now. The NEWSROOM begins right now.

Hello, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Welcome to the CNN NEWSROOM. Here are some of the big stories this hour.

The suspected mastermind of the Benghazi attack is now on American soil. Hear the charges he's facing and the potential political fallout from his prosecution.

Plus --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This lady is welcome inside my house anytime she wants to eat my food that she wants, and harass me basically. I'm now a victim in my own home and it's completely legal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: My goodness. A California family fires their live-in nanny, but then she refuses to move out of the home, and the law is actually on her side. Brand new developments in this ongoing saga this hour.

And do or die. World Cup games are about to begin. The host country Brazil taking on Chile today while Team USA preps for its big showdown against Belgium. Later on, we'll take you live to Rio.

Nearly two years after the attack, the man suspected of masterminding the deadly assault on the U.S. mission in Benghazi has arrived in the United States to face justice. Just a short time ago Ahmed Abu Khattalah arrived at federal court in Washington. He is expected to appear before a judge later on today.

We're covering all angles of this story. Erin McPike is at the White House with a look at the political controversy surrounding Khattalah's prosecution. But first justice correspondent Evan Perez is outside the U.S. District Court where Khattalah is right now and he's joining us with the very latest. Evan, give us an idea of what took place this morning. Quite the

moment as he was taken into court.

EVAN PEREZ, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Right, Fredricka. There was a heavy police presence here this morning. There was a helicopter overhead. There was a -- tons of police on the streets blocking off entrances as Abu Khattalah was finally brought into this courthouse behind me.

Now we're right across from the U.S. capitol which is where a lot of controversy obviously has raged over the Benghazi attack in 2012 and about Abu Khattalah and how long it's taken to get him here. He was captured about two weeks ago and since then he's been on a ship, the USS New York, where he was being interrogated by an FBI team, an FBI- led team, that's been questioning him for intelligence purposes.

Now comes the trial, which we believe at this hour he's meeting with his lawyers for the first time and is getting prepared to face a judge, where he'll be read these charges -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: And that he has an attorney and he is getting a chance to talk for the first time now while he was being interrogated or questioned in international waters, was it the case that he did not have any representation? Did that kind of questioning ceased as soon as they hit U.S. waters?

PEREZ: Well, you know, what happens is, you know, so after he was captured about just over -- just about two weeks ago, they brought him to the ship in the Mediterranean and they decided to bring him across the Atlantic by boat, by ship. During that period he's been questioned for intelligence purposes. Now this information that he provide won't likely be available for use against him here in court.

It's simply to find out what information he may have about other militants in Libya and what other information he can provide about other defendants that have been indicted in this very case. The period -- during this period he's not allowed to talk to a lawyer. At any moment, though, he could have stopped talking and stopped cooperating and they would have had to cease questioning.

We do know that he would have been given the opportunity today to waive this hearing. And clearly, he did not, which is why we're here today, and clearly he has decided that whatever information he was providing, it is over now and it is time for him to face the justice system here in the United States, and in a trial probably in the next few months -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Evan Perez, thank you so much. Keep us posted.

Meantime, the criminal complaint against Khattalah was filed nearly a year ago but the political controversy surrounding his persecution may just be beginning.

White House correspondent Erin McPike has that story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ERIN MCPIKE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Upon revealing Ahmed Abu Khattalah's capture nearly two weeks ago, President Obama announced the alleged terrorist who spearhead the attack on the U.S. mission in Benghazi will, quote, "now face the full weight of the American justice system."

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's important for us to send a message to the world that when Americans are attacked, no matter how long it takes, we will find those responsible and we will bring them to justice.

MCPIKE: But as Khattalah awaits trial here in Washington, Republicans are blasting the administration insisting he should have been sent to Guantanamo Bay first.

REP. PETER KING (R), NEW YORK: Before he's turned over to civilian authorities, the FBI and all our intelligence agencies, CIA and others, to interrogate him as long as they have to because I'm not that concerned about a criminal conviction. We're going to get that ultimately. But it's important we get as much intelligence out of him as possible, both as to what happened at Benghazi, who planned it, how it happened.

MCPIKE: A senior administration official had insisted the government will try to collect all the intelligence it can from Khattalah as it does from all terror suspects. Meantime, congressional Republicans are planning hearings soon to further investigate the 2012 attack. And added to the trial, a looming question over how the two events could affect Hillary Clinton's political future.

HILLARY CLINTON, FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: It took, as you know, 10 years to bring Osama bin Laden to justice. It's taken more than two years to bring this perpetrator to justice. But Ahmed Abu Khalid has been very much -- Khattalah has been very much on the minds of our law enforcement, our military and our intelligence professionals since that night in September of 2012.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, let's bring in now from the White House Erin McPike.

A whole lot of controversy straight ahead. You know, this really is just the beginning to what degree?

MCPIKE: Well, Fredricka, he's being prosecuted by the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia. And many critics are saying that is not high level enough. So that is one thing that we'll be hearing more about in the months to come as this trial perceived.

The other thing is the security that will have to be handled here in Washington, D.C., already very high level security. Of course all the way through the city. But the courtroom is between the White House and the capitol building so it's going to create a real security mess here. The last thing is that Republicans are saying that there will be more

congressional hearings on Benghazi in the coming months. So all of this could loom large over the midterm elections this fall.

WHITFIELD: All right, Erin. Thank you so much.

We're going to talk more about this. The capture of Khattalah was of course a big score for U.S. intelligence and for nearly two weeks now top investigators have been interrogating him at sea as we've been talking about.

So CNN national security analyst and former CIA operative Bob Baer joins me now.

So, Bob, you know, you just heard Erin talk about some of the security concerns particularly given the proximity of that courthouse to the White House. Is it really an issue? I mean, we're talking about the nation's capital which knows about handling security.

Why would this be any different?

ROBERT BAER, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: I don't think it makes any difference. No one is going to attack that court house. You know, Washington, D.C. is the most defended city in the world. The chances of a terrorist attack yes, there's always that but no one is going to really attack the court. I just don't think it's an issue.

WHITFIELD: OK. Let's talk about some of the other things that may be of issue. We heard Evan talk about the information that was gathered while Khattalah was in transit, in international waters. That information not likely to be used in court because he wasn't given, you know, Miranda rights, he didn't have an attorney. But what was the sole purpose of that kind of intelligence gathering that or those talks, interrogations?

BAER: Well, right away they would have asked about imminent threats against Americans around the world. I mean, he does belong to a global terrorist organization, Ansar Sharia. They'd want to know that first off. Secondly they'd want to know who else was involved in the attack on our consulate in Benghazi. Obviously there were more people. And was he ready to name them.

WHITFIELD: Wait, would there be any real expectation that he would willingly give up that kind of information?

BAER: I don't think so. They never do. He's probably a believer and won't talk about it, probably won't talk much in court except propaganda. I think they probably didn't get much out of him. I haven't heard about any other arrests of indictments. No. We won't get anything out of them and, you know, frankly, I'm happy it's going to trial because Benghazi is such a hideous political football. We really do need to get to the bottom of this. Was it incompetence, was it a cover-up and the rest of it.

WHITFIELD: Do you think a trial in federal court versus a court martial which would possibly come out of, you know, him being held out of Guantanamo, that the outcome is going to be far more satisfactory coming from the federal, you know, court prosecution route?

BAER: I think it will. It's a fair process, you don't have good counsel, the evidence will be produced. And I think it's a good idea. We remove Benghazi as a political issue for the elections this year, in 2016. There clearly were some mistakes made there but I'd like to know before I vote.

WHITFIELD: All right. Bob Baer, thank you so much for joining us this morning. Appreciate it.

BAER: Thanks.

WHITFIELD: And I'll see you again later on this hour. We'll talk more about other matters.

Meantime, you can find out more on the case against this Benghazi suspect, Ahmed Abu Khattalah, at CNN.com.

All the while now Iraqi forces are cracking down on Islamic militants who have seized much of northern and western Iraq and new government offenses have those ISIS fighters on the run in one major city.

Here's what we know right now. A top security official says Iraqi forces have retaken the city of Tikrit. Government troops advanced on the city from four directions using tanks and backed up by the Iraqi Air Force. A tribal leader says the ISIS militants helped by tribal fighters have retreated. In another offensive farther north Iraq has carried out air strikes on ISIS position in the city of Mosul. That's according to a senior Iraqi military official.

Four separate locations were hit including ISIS headquarters in Mosul. And in the skies over Baghdad armed U.S. drones are providing protection for 180 U.S. military advisers who are there to help Iraqi forces collect intelligence on the militants.

A couple says they fired their live-in nanny weeks ago because she's lazy. But guess what? They haven't been able to kick her out of their house because of a legal technicality. What you need to know about tenant laws especially in the state of California.

And stunning new details in the death of a toddler who died in a hot car. What his dad researched on the Internet.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. This is a pretty remarkable case. A California family is being forced to live with the nanny they fired three weeks ago. This is new video from our affiliate KTLA. The nanny is actually sitting in her car. This is what happened last night outside a police station in Los Angeles. She hasn't returned back to the family's home since the story gained national attention this week, but police say she has every legal right to stay in the house where her belongings remain.

The family had hired her to help watch their three children and do chores around the house in exchange for room and board. But the family says she actually got lazy after the first couple of months, where they thought she did a pretty good job. So they actually fired her on June 6th. Only problem, authorities told them, the family, that this woman is legally permitted to stay in the home. They must go to court to get her evicted.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RALPH BRACAMONTE, HOMEOWNER: If we're to lock her out of our house, she could sue us. If we're to grab her stuff and throw it out of our house, she could sue us.

MARCELLA BRACAMONTE, HOMEOWNER: We own this house. We own it and our names are on the title, not hers, and we can't make her leave.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So there's a lot more to this story. We're going to actually talk about the legal aspects of this case in the next hour with our legal guy, Richard Herman.

All right. Now to other developments. In the case of a Georgia father who left his son in a hot car for seven hours while he went to work.

I want to bring in CNN's Nick Valencia. He is in Alabama where the 22-month-old child's funeral will be held in just a few hours from now.

Nick, you have new details from police in Georgia on what the father apparently searched for on the Internet?

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We do, Fred. These search warrants, three of them, released altogether by police and perhaps the most startling detail in the search warrant is this, a statement that I'm about to read here. It says, quote, "During an interview with Justin he stated that he recently researched through the Internet child deaths inside vehicles and what temperature it needs to be for that to occur. Justin stated that he was fearful that this could happen."

Now I should note, Fred, that earlier this week a source with knowledge of the investigation told HLN's Nancy Grace that on Justin Ross Harris' work computer, there was a search for how long it would take for an animal to die in a hot car.

On this statement, this and the search warrant here of a child death in hot cars, we don't know the context to which this statement was given or how long ago this search was conducted. We just had a lot of questions. We thought we'd get answers as soon as we got these search warrants. Perhaps motive would be included in the search warrant. That's not of course Justin Ross Harris is being charged with murder of his 22-month-old son Cooper Harris as well as a second-degree charge of child cruelty charge that he denies and has pleaded not guilty to -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: So, Nick, so this funeral is to take place in just a couple of hours. Now the father remains in custody so he will not be able to attend the funeral. Have you heard much or even seen the mother? Is she there? Paint a picture for me for the family dynamic if you could.

VALENCIA: Sure. The family and friends here that we've spoken to on and off camera are reluctant to speak to the media. In fact they don't really want to us here. They don't like the negative attention that Justin Ross Harris has received and many of them I've spoken to say it just doesn't add to the man that they know.

They speak of a man with a strong moral fiber, a God-centered man, a man that would make people laugh and he's been described as a great father. Liana Harris spoke to the media very early on saying that she would not comment and a family attorney as far as we understand has told both family and friends not to talk to the media.

Yesterday I went to Ross Harris' home. His parents were there. His parents kindly asked me to leave and said that they don't want people like me or the media in this town, his hometown, of Tuscaloosa, Alabama -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. A very sad day for this funeral and then shrouded by this ongoing investigation and now the dad being charged as it relates to the child's death.

Thanks so much, Nick. Keep us posted.

All right. Even with its loss to Germany -- talk of World Cup soccer now -- the U.S. soccer team made it to the sweet 16. Next test, a match Tuesday against an unbeaten Belgium team. We'll give you a World Cup preview from Brazil, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: That was a short version. I was waiting for a little cha- cha moment.

OK. They're in.

(LAUGHTER)

They survived in group G, the so-called group of death. The --

(LAUGHTER)

People are laughing at me in here. The U.S. will play Belgium Tuesday at the World Cup. By finishing second in their group, the Americans bought themselves an extra day of rest, which could be rather vital and necessary. They'll be facing a Belgium team that won all three of its matches.

So joining me from Rio is Amanda Davis.

Amanda, oh, my gosh. Look at the crowd behind you there. So pumped up. OK. Before we talk about the U.S. team, let's talk about Brazil,

because it is going to be in a matchup with Chile. And so I imagine that folks are going bananas there with the match just a half hour away?

AMANDA DAVIS, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Fred. There is only one color to be wearing in this town today. And that is bright yellow. It is absolutely rocking here on Copacabana Beach. Thousands and thousands of fans, regardless where they're from in the world, wearing Brazil shirts and piling down here where the party has already started because this is where the World Cup gets serious, of course. You win, stay in. You lose and you go home.

And Brazil (INAUDIBLE) their chance against Chile, and a team that they knocked out in South Africa four years ago at this stage. The Brazil boss has been saying that the nerves are starting to kick in for his side. They understand that this is where things are getting serious, but these fans are pretty confident, and I'm pretty confident the party will be going for the next few hours -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: My goodness. OK. Well, after that excitement, then the U.S. has its turn in a few days. And so you know, the question is, will Jozy Altidore, will he be healthy enough to play Tuesday in that match against Belgium?

DAVIS: Yes, it was the focus of a lot of the questions to Jurgen Klinsmann. It was a pretty large day for the U.S. yesterday, as is traditional a day after a game. Friends and family of the team went to the training session. They all had a Brazilian barbecue, but Klinsmann stepped up, spokes to the media, and he said he's confident that Jozy Altidore is moving in the right direction with a hamstring strain that he suffered in the first match. He didn't commit as far as saying he will start on Tuesday against Belgium, but at this stage, every day counts for Jozy Altidore and definitely he would be a massive boost to the USA ahead of a very, very good Belgium team.

WHITFIELD: All right. All right. Well, so much excitement. Lots of fun, and something tells me I know there are diehard fans rooting for their country. You know, teams. But it doesn't even matter the outcome, because it looks like everybody is having a good time anyway. Bottom line. I mean, how could you not there in Brazil?

Amanda among them. Thanks so much. Amanda Davis, appreciate it. We'll check back with you.

All right. Meantime today people in cities across the country are rallying to stop the deportation of undocumented immigrants. Organizers are calling it the national day to stop separating families. Today marks one year since the Democratic-controlled Senate passed an immigration reform bill. Activists are demanding the GOP- controlled House pass a reform bill.

CNN is live at the rally in New York set to start next hour. We'll take you there.

And be sure to tune in tomorrow night. The film "DOCUMENTED" tells the story of Jose Antonio Vargas, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist working illegally in U.S. He tells his story tomorrow right here on CNN 9:00 Eastern Time.

Iraq's military says it has regained the upper hand in its fight against Islamic militants. We'll tell you why, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Iraqi forces are now saying they are gaining ground in their fight to defeat Islamic militants who have taken over huge portions of northern and western Iraq. Our Nima Elbagir joins us live now from Baghdad. So Nima, what's happening on the ground? Why would they say that or believe that?

NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we do understand that they have called an air strikes over Mosul and they are saying that they have control of Tikrit, but we've been hearing a number of conflicting reports, Fredricka. The reality is that the Iraqi army is under a lot of pressure to finally start delivering.

The reality also is this is an extraordinarily uphill battle and a very difficult fight. It's difficult enough to stand and fight, but it's even more difficult to regain territory once you've had to withdraw. What they have on their side is that some of those Sunni tribal leaders are beginning to move back on to the government side, but we're hearing a number of conflicting reports about this, Fredricka.

As we ourselves cannot confirm then we are going to have to say that over Tikrit is claim and counterclaim. But the Iraqi army has shown video of its air strikes on Mosul. So we do know that that has happened. We also understand that to the south of Baghdad, their ground forces have called in air support, but you get a sense and appreciation of how fluid this whole situation is.

And while all of that is happening, the Kurdish regional government has decided for security reasons it's going to close some of its border crossings, Fredricka, effectively closing one of the few areas available to these extraordinarily vulnerable people fleeing the ongoing fighting.

Just to give you a sense of how devastating it's been for people on the ground, in the first few days of the fighting in Mosul, nearly half a million people fled through those crossings into the Kurdish autonomous region. That option is now closed to them. There is a lot of concern about this on the ground.

We understand that some of the international access are trying to exert pressure behind the scenes, but for now for some very desperate people, that is one less option -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: It is indeed a desperate situation. All right, Nima Elbagir, thank you so much. Keep us posted there from Baghdad.

Let's talk more about all that's taking place there. Now we also know that armed U.S. drones are flying overhead in Iraq. Joining us now to sort through all of it, Philip Mudd, our counterterrorism analyst who worked at the CIA and the FBI in Washington and Bob Baer is CNN's intelligence and national security analyst and back with us and he is also a former operative with the CIA. He is in Silverton, Colorado.

Gentlemen, Philip, to you first. What is your view on why these U.S. armed drones would be flying overhead in Baghdad? How helpful or potentially harmful is it in this conflict?

PHILIP MUDD, CNN COUNTERTERRORISM ANALYST: No, I'd say helpful. My view is based on one word. That word is Benghazi. When you're putting people in harm's way, whether it's a military adviser who is there to support the Iraqi military, but not to participate in operations, you don't want a situation where their operational facilities are being breached. And you don't have, for example, a drone rather capability to go hit whoever is breaching the wall.

The second long term issue is the game I used to be involved in when I was at CIA, if the president ever gives the order for us, that the United States, to be involved in operations against the insurgents, one of the great point target weapons out there, obviously, is an armed drone. The same kind of thing that we used to eliminate a lot of al Qaeda's leadership in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

WHITFIELD: So you could do that without so-called boots on the ground, and if it means military engagement involved in the U.S., you could do it by way of strictly armed drones or armed drones in assistance with other air assault?

MUDD: Absolutely. You could do without boots on the ground. Remember, the elimination of the second tier of al Qaeda, the guys focused on primarily when I was at the agency, done largely in the tribal areas of Western Pakistan, the lawless areas on the border with Afghanistan. We didn't have U.S. Special Forces out there or big green U.S. Army out there, but we did have the eye in the skies, and as someone who's seen that footage live, when we struck an al Qaeda guy in Pakistan it is devastating.

WHITFIELD: OK. So then, Bob, you know, where are you on the use of the armed drones? Do you feel like it kind of -- you know, escalates any potential volatilities involving the U.S.? Does it -- is it really the precursor for the U.S. becoming even more involved by use of these armed drones?

BOB BAER, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, I look at it in two ways. One is Phil is absolutely right. We need firsthand American controlled intelligence on the ground, and that's the reconnaissance drones that will do that. If there should be some sort of decay in the security situation in Baghdad, we're going to need those drones to protect our mission there. We have a very large embassy, and they'll need to be gotten.

We may have to send troops in to get them out. We're not there yet, but you can never tell. We can't trust the Iraqis clearly on this. You can't tell the truth on what's happening in Mosul and Anbar Province. On the other hand we don't want to get into another war in Iraq. What we're seeing in Anbar and Tikrit is the tribes are turning against ISIS, and they will continue to do this if they're left alone.

I'm in touch with them every day. They don't like ISIS. They don't like the central government. They keep talking about partition, declaring their independence. But I think that if this became a U.S.- Sunni fight, a serious blowback all over the world.

WHITFIELD: Does it, though, seem -- probably harder for the U.S. to not get engaged in this conflict, given where we are already, in terms of Iraq needing help desperately, unable to really fend for itself? Bob, do you feel like it's inevitable that in some way, shape or form, the U.S. is going to be involved in this conflict. Even if it means no boots on the ground, but still engaged in other ways?

BAER: Fredricka, we have to be engaged at all levels. Particularly diplomacy, because what we're seeing is a Sunni insurgency, if this turns into a caliphate, the first thing that we'll do is go to war with Iran. We don't need. It will move down through the gulf, which will be catastrophic for oil supplies and humanitarian crisis. No. We cannot let this fester, but we really do need the cooperation of for instance, the Saudis and the Qataris and Emirates. Without the help of Iran, we can't do this.

WHITFIELD: All right, we're going to talk more about that coalition of countries that may need to be involved here later on this afternoon. Thanks so much for now, Phil Mudd and Bob Baer. Appreciate that.

All right, more than $100,000 was donated to help a young girl mulled by a pit bull and then allegedly kicked out of a KFC restaurant because of the sight of her injuries. Why some people say that story actually could be a scam.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: It was a story that lit up social media around the world, and fastfood chain, KFC, became the target when it was accused of mistreating a little girl in one of its restaurants. The 3-year-old Victoria Welcher was mulled by a pitbull. She visited a KFC restaurant while recovering from her devastating injuries. Her grandmother says they were asked to leave because Victoria's scars were scaring customers.

But things may not be as they first seem to be, and it has created an issue for the crowdsourcing web site trying to raise money for the girl's family. Here's Jean Casarez.

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fred, crowdfunding site, they are becoming very popular these days and the promise is pretty simple. People tell their stories and in turn receive donations. In 2013 alone, the crowdfunding industry raised an estimated $3 billion to $5 billion in funding, according to research group, "Mass Solutions."

But how can you tell that you're not donating to a scam? Many times you can't, and the popular "Gofundme" site learned that the hard way.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) CASAREZ (voice-over): The family created a page on "Gofundme" to tell her story, and donations started pouring in. Even Kentucky Fried Chicken said they would donate $30,000 for her recovery. But wait, Kentucky Fried Chicken did an investigation of their own to look at the validity of the family's claim and found no evidence to support their story.

Here is what they said in a statement to CNN, "Like the rest of America, the KFC family has been moved by the story of Victoria's injuries and recovery. After the alleged incident was reported to us, two investigations took place, including one by an independent investigator. Neither revealed any evidence that the incident occurred, and we consider the investigation closed. We are honoring our commitment to make a $30,000 donation to assist with Victoria's medical bills."

Despite repeated attempts by CNN to contact the family and its attorney, no calls were returned. The attorney did tell this to a local newspaper. "It is unfortunate that Victoria and her family are being vilified on what appears to be the result of an inconclusive investigation conducted by KFC and/or its agents that implies Victoria's story is a hoax." Gofundme has now pulled Victoria's page.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CASAREZ: Crowd funding site "Gofundme" says a small number of donors have requested refunds after pledging money for Victoria Welcher. The company says that they will give the remainder of the donations, well over $100,000 to Victoria's family on June 30th unless instructed otherwise by law enforcement.

Before all of this money had been raised, several physicians said they would donate their services for plastic surgery and a new eye for this little girl who was mauled by pitbulls -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: Wow. OK. Thanks so much, Jean Casarez, appreciate that. Google unveiling its next wave of features. We'll explain how they work, next.

But first, we take you on an American journey by brave U.S. soldiers who have fought in some of the most dangerous places in the world. Filmmaker and journalist, Sebastian Junger, charts the journey in a new documentary called, "Korengal." It takes us back to the Korengal Valley in Afghanistan delving deeper into the emotional reality of modern war.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Until you hear the snap of a bullet go by your head or hit your head, there's nothing else like it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're getting engaged again because our guys are moving.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ear drums out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get out of the blast.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pretty much -- here comes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Your turn. Come on -- fire!

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: The new film is a follow-up to the Junger's oscar nominated war documentary titled "Restrepo." Anderson Cooper talked with the filmmaker about why he made it and what we can actually learn from it.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST, "AC 360": Sebastian, even though Korengal picks up where the film "Restrepo" left off, you said it's very different, it's trying to understand rather than experience, what do you want people to understand?

SEBASTIAN JUNGER, DIRECTOR, "KORENGAL": Well, you know, "Restrepo" came out in the middle of two wars, I wanted civilians to get a feel for what combat is like for the soldiers that we send over there. "Korengal" is different. It's an attempt to inquire a little more deeply into how combat affects these young men. It was all young men out there and there was some very interesting conversations with these guys that we had about the consequences of all this.

A lot of them afterwards really missed it and wanted to go back, which is a puzzling thing on the face of it if you think how hard it was out there and how dangerous. And the other sort of end of the spectrum, you know, one guy really ruminated whether God hates him for all the killing that they did and added, but I would do it over again the same way if I had to. Complex stuff for these soldiers.

COOPER: But wanted to go back because of the intensity of the experience, because it was -- you talk to soldiers, to Marines, to those who have served and say often that it's -- there is nothing like it anywhere else. There is nothing like the bond that they had with others, there is nothing like the experience.

JUNGER: I think in combat, you're sort of dosed, if you will, with two potent chemicals, one is adrenaline. Men in particular respond strongly to that experience and the other is human closeness. They are sleeping shoulder to shoulder with each other over the course of a year on a remote ridge top. They are completely relying on each other for their very survival. There was no internet, no phone, no TV, nothing.

They were on a ridge with each other for a year. And that kind of intense human closeness I think actually reproduces our human evolution, our evolutionary past quite closely and I think they come out of that experience really kind of missing it and missing the security of it.

And they get back to this wide open society and all of a sudden they are alone again and I think it's very, very unsettling for them. Those are two things I think they really miss.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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WHITFIELD: Some big announcements from Google this week as they try to utilize their Android system to build products you won't be able to live without, at least that's the think. They hope that you'll prefer it over what Apple is offering. Among the new gadgets, Android Auto and Android TV. I want to bring in CNN technology analyst, Brett Larson to talk about all of this.

Let's begin with the Android Auto, we're talking about you'd be driving your car and you want your air-conditioning, your garage to open up. All this stuff at home before you get there and you're doing that from your car?

BRETT LARSON, CNN TECHNOLOGY ANALYST: Absolutely. You know, the dashboard has become another great tech innovator. It's a place where a lot of ideas are going. We saw at the Consumer Electronics show this year, cars that are now shipping with an internet connection in them, so you don't even need a cell phone anymore because your car is wired to the internet.

WHITFIELD: One more distraction.

LARSON: Exactly. The distraction, hit the nail on the head. That's where I think the Android Auto is going to be great because you're bringing in actual operating system into your dashboard. It's no longer the navigation system provided by Lexus or Nissan or whoever manufactures your car. It's done by Google. It's going to have voice commands.

It's going to be able to be updated and made better as time goes on, but absolutely the interesting thing is now your car is smart. It's a smart car, basically and it has an internet connection and it is going to be able to start talking to all other things in your house that are connected to the internet.

WHITFIELD: I guess some people find that very exciting, but then the flip side is that, gosh, the way we're re relying on technology, now, you really can't escape it.

LARSON: Literally can't escape it. I mean, it's great to think I can set my car to tell my house to turn on my air-conditioning when I'm mile away. I can have my garage door open as soon as I pull in because it knows where I am, but if it knows where you are, then so could potentially everyone else in the world.

WHITFIELD: So, privacy issue.

LARSON: The privacy issue is huge.

WHITFIELD: OK, so let's TV, this Android TV. How is it going to make watching TV that much more interesting. What is it going to do for us that our programming isn't doing? LARSON: That's a valid point. We've got your cable company has a set top box. Apple has a set top box. Google has Google Chrome that plugs right into your TV and now, we have Google TV. Companies are kind of in a race here because somebody's got to win. I think the Google TV is a great idea, but it is in a market that's pretty well saturated with some very popular players.

The Apple and Roku being the ones that come to mind. I was hoping to see some sort of premium offer, to see Google say we're working with one of the movie channels, you're going to be able to access a movie channel with an internet connection. But the set top boxes are critical. And becoming more critical because it's again, that last stop before your eyeballs. They want to control that because they want guess what you want to watch and advertise to you.

WHITFIELD: Interesting. All right, now, all this stuff right around the corner, weeks away, months, a year away?

LARSON: I think Apple TV will probably see by the fall. I mean, they definitely can roll that out quickly. The car stuff I think will probably start to see next year. That's about a year away because you've got to have your deals with manufacturers and they're going to put it into cars. It's an exciting time. We are living more and more like the Jetsons.

WHITFIELD: Things to simplify our lives, but somehow doesn't it make it more complicated?

LARSON: It does and I'm still waiting for my flying car.

WHITFIELD: All right, Brett Larson, thanks so much. Appreciate it.

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WHITFIELD: In California, police deliberately burned down a home because they say it was full of explosives. Everyone living in this mobile home park in Cathedral City was forced to evacuate because of the fire, but should be able to return today. Police were tipped off when a woman called about her brother who said that she was delusional. The house was burned because police say there was no way to remove the bombs without endangering first responders.

The families of those killed in the deadly Santa Barbara shooting rampage are still grieving, unable to comprehend why their loved ones had to die and the shooter's father, Eliot Roger, is breaking his silence. He spoke to ABC about what it's like knowing his son caused so much suffering.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They resent by interviewing you because they hold you responsible in part for their children's death. What do you say to them?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I wish I could turn back the clock. I wish these families didn't have to go through this terrible ordeal. It's very hard for them to understand that I didn't know the monster that was in my son. The only reason I'm here is to tell his story to try and stop this happening again.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What do you hope that it will accomplish?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think that there's an awful lot that can be done in this country to help families that might have another Elliot. There are holes in the mental health system. And I think that's really got to be looked at.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Peter Roger, father of Elliot Roger, talking with Barbara Walters last night.

All right, we'll have much more straight ahead in the NEWSROOM and it all starts right now.

All right, hello again, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Here are the top stories we are following in the CNN NEWSROOM.