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Search Underway For Dozens Believed To Be Buried Under Rubble; Derek Chauvin Sentenced To 22.5 Years For Killing George Floyd; Negotiators Agree On Framework For Police Reform Bill; World Health Organization Weighs COVID Booster Shots. Aired 11a-12p ET

Aired June 26, 2021 - 11:00   ET

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

[10:59:52]

(OFFICIAL SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right. You're listening to a variety of officials there in Florida from the governor of Florida to the Miami-Dade mayor, Daniella Levine Cava, as well as Miami-Dade Fire all saying there they've not come across any signs of life.

However, they continue to investigate and look after the collapse of that condominium there in south Florida.

Thank you so much for joining us. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

We continue our coverage right now. Boris Sanchez also will be joining us live in Surfside, Florida near the site of this condominium collapse.

It is a devastating and heartbreaking day today as officials continue to comb delicately through the rubble there.

New concerns now in Surfside, Florida over the safety of neighboring buildings following that deadly collapse in Champlain Towers South.

Boris Sanchez joining us now in what has appeared to be a very rainy, you know, Surfside. Again, it continues to hamper efforts, but it hasn't stopped them, Boris.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, no question, Fred, it has not stopped them.

And a number of updates to bring you now from this press conference. I think the thing that looms over everything is the fact that there is not an update on the 159 people who are unaccounted for here.

It has now been more than 24 hours since we got that number. And as we heard the mayor of Miami-Dade say, there is no sign of a body or a person who might be in need of medical assistance.

There is also this question of, could have this been prevented? There was a report that came out early this morning that indicated that back in 2018, an engineer had studied the pool deck, one of the lower levels of this building, and discovered very serious cracks in some of the columns there that required some work, that needed to be addressed.

We should be clear, that report gave no indication of any immediate danger, but that engineer back in 2018 clearly stated that it needed to be addressed immediately.

Further, we also heard from the Governor Ron DeSantis and the mayor of Miami-Dade County basically asking for the families to have patience because, unfortunately, this will be a slow and tedious process.

And one other note, Fred, the mayor of Surfside, I spoke with him earlier today about this condominium's sister building. It's just a block away. And it is essentially identical to this building.

He argued that that building should be evacuated until a structural investigation can take place. I want you to listen to what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR CHARLES BURKETTT, SURFSIDE, FLORIDA: Has the same name, had the same developer. It probably had the same materials. It probably had the same plans.

And you know, people are asking me, is the building safe? And I can't tell them it is safe. I can't tell them that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Just to quickly point out, Governor DeSantis and other leaders here were asked about that. They essentially said that that is up to local leadership. But they don't exactly know if there is structural damage to that building, which is still housing all of its residents.

Meantime, the desperate, nonstop search to find any survivors is still under way. It is a dangerous and delicate process. Again, 159 people still unaccounted for.

And complicated that matter, what we heard from officials not very long ago. There is a fire raging underneath this debris, and they cannot find its source.

We're also learning today that officials raised major concerns, again about this condo back in 2018. We're going to get into the details of that field survey that warned about cracking and that major repairs were needed.

Again, we should point out, those major repairs were actually about to get started. Unfortunately, obviously, the unimaginable took place.

We have full team coverage on the ground in Surfside as the search continues.

Let's begin with CNN's Rosa Flores. She was at this press conference. What was said by these officials that stood out to you, Rosa?

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Boris, several things. First of all, both the fire chief and the Miami-Dade mayor mentioning this trench that was created to try to get to that deep-rooted fire that we've been talking about.

[11:04:54]

According to both of those officials, they're using foam, they're using infrared technology, trying to get to the source, but it's still smoldering. It's still going, and so it complicates the search.

Now, while they were doing that trench, according to officials, they were also, of course, looking for signs of life, trying to figure out if there was anybody alive in that area.

At the very end of that press conference, the chief clarified that they have not found and have not heard any sounds lately. Yesterday, he had mentioned that they had heard sounds of tapping. Today, he is saying that they are not -- they didn't -- they haven't heard anything.

Now, the other thing that we were trying to really question officials about is this 2018 report that is really showing us and telling us so much more about the structural integrity of this building and raises so many questions. Many of our questions really went unanswered.

It started pouring in the middle of the press conference, which didn't make it easy. And then as we continued to ask questions, the officials left. But they did answer or tried to answer a few.

One of the basic questions, of course, for officials is who knew about this report and when, and why wasn't something done before? I asked that question to the mayor of Miami-Dade County. I couldn't really hear, again, because it was raining, but she dismissed the question and went on to somebody else.

The other question, which was posed by another reporter to Governor Ron DeSantis, is about that recommendation, Boris, that you were talking about, that the city mayor of Surfside told you about, that he's recommending for the evacuation of the building -- the sister building of this Champlain Towers South.

And the governor said that this was up to local officials, that local officials would have to make that recommendation. Then, of course, we follow up with, ok, so what are local officials going to recommend? They did not answer that question.

Then I followed up with a question to Governor Ron DeSantis, well then, Governor, what is your recommendation for these local officials to do? Of course, the governor would have an opinion. He did not answer my question.

But here's the big point about this report, is that it really shines light on what should have been known ahead of this collapse.

And let me just take you through this a little bit because one of the main issues is described in this report, and it includes words like "major structural damage, exposed deteriorating rebar". So what does all this -- what does all this mean?

I want to take you through a few of the paragraphs here because it'll give you an idea of what this is. And I'm going to quote here from the report, "Waterproofing below the pool deck and entrance drive, as well as all of the planter waterproofing is beyond its useful life and therefore, must" -- let me highlight that -- "must all be completely removed and replaced."

And it goes on to say, quote, "Failure to replace the waterproofing in the near future will cause the extent of the concrete deterioration to expand exponentially."

This report explains that this waterproofing in the entrance drive pool deck, planter waterproofing area, it says, "It was laid flat and it needed to be sloped so that the water could drain."

So instead of that water draining, that water would pond on the waterproofing, and the only way for that water to evaporate was through evaporation. That was one of the issues. And I'm going to quote from the report again, it calls it a, quote, "a systemic issue for this building structure".

So Boris, this really gives us a better picture, a clearer idea, but again, as we're trying to ask these questions to officials, to see who knew about this and why was something not done before, they're really not answering that question.

What the mayor did say, though, is that now she has asked for an audit of all of the buildings in the next 30 days, of all the buildings that are five stories and higher that are 40 years and older.

And so they're hoping, of course, to lock at look at all of the buildings in this area and hoping that this doesn't happen again. So this is a proactive approach.

But of course, we're asking these questions for all those family members who are in the reunification center, hoping to find out answers about what happened to their loved ones.

And I've got to add, of course, the search and rescue mission continues. These men and women continue to expose their lives, to try to save lives in the rubble, Boris.

SANCHEZ: Yes, rosa. And Mayor Levine Cava was asked about that report. She said that she was not aware of it.

We're going to speak to an expert about the contours of what you described, those deteriorating conditions, and ultimately what that means in just a moment.

[11:09:56]

SANCHEZ: But I want to dig in deeper into something Rosa just pointed out -- Rosa, thank you. There are dozens of families right now that are anxiously awaiting any news on finding their loved ones.

It is an agonizing time for so many, especially hearing that there is no update on the numbers. Despite that, there is still hope.

Let's go to CNN's Nick Valencia. He's on the scene with us here in Surfside. Nick, you know, just looking at these scenes, hearing these updates from officials, how are these families holding on right now?

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Boris, this is the definition of faith. I just spoke to a woman who said that her husband is among the unaccounted for, and she says she has a feeling in her gut that he's still very much alive.

And she's not alone in that feeling. These family members and friends who are waiting for news about their loved ones who are among the missing and unaccounted for, they say until they get confirmed information that their loved ones have perished, they're going to cling on to that hope that they're still alive.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VALENCIA (voice over): If hope is the last thing that's lost, there's still plenty of it here. Outside the Surfside community center, among those still holding out for answers about their unaccounted loved ones is Abigail Pereira.

(on camera): Do you still have hope?

(voice over): Pereira says her friends, Fabian Nunez, and his partner Andres Galpascole (ph) had arrived at the Surfside high-rise just a few hours before the collapse to stay at the apartment of a friend.

They had plans to take their daughter, Sophia, to the beach the next morning. She says the six-year-old is also missing.

Mike Silber (ph) was at home in bed in New York when he saw a video of the building his uncle lives in on the news. He's now in Surfside looking for answers for the five family members, he says, are still missing, but believes are still alive.

MIKE SILBER, THREE FAMILY MEMBERS AT COLLAPSED CONDO BUILDING: There's absolutely survivors in here. There's just no question about it. There are survivors in there. I hope it's my family, and I hope it's everybody.

VALENCIA: Adriana LaFonte (ph) says her ex-husband, 54-year-old Manuel LaFonte, was also inside the building when it came down. She says in Spanish she, too, hasn't given up hope of finding him alive.

While there is hope, there's also growing frustration. Friends, family members, and community volunteers gather to share their pain in between heavy bands of rain. The weather added to the unwelcome stress.

(on camera): Carol, what's making you tear up right now?

CAROL HUDSON, SURFSIDE FLORIDA RESIDENT VOLUNTEER: The sadness of what everybody is going through. If I didn't know where my parents were, my kids were for a day, I'd go nuts. VALENCIA (voice over): But volunteers like BZ Openden, who's visiting

from Baltimore said he hoped to do his part to help put some of those waiting here at ease.

(on camera): You're by far the youngest volunteer here.

BZ OPENDEN, VOLUNTEER: Yes. But you know, the more, the merrier. Anyone can help.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VALENCIA: And to see BZ here earlier was such a tender moment amidst what is otherwise a very, very somber scene here as they wait for answers.

There have been no answers and no really -- no new updates as we have been saying all morning long about those unaccounted for.

But it is really uplifting to a lot of people who are waiting for information to see that everyone is doing what they can to help here and to chip in. And that in these tragedies, there's always going to be people who want to help.

You know, the first responders here, Boris, we've talked about it, they have been tirelessly working. They too, are hoping for a miracle.

They have been trying their hardest and their best, digging through this rubble, digging through this debris to try to find any ounce of information, to try to find anyone that may be still buried underneath that debris and rubble.

And until those rescue efforts become recovery efforts, that's exactly what they're going to be. They're going to act as though people are still alive, trapped under that debris, Boris.

SANCHEZ: It is their hope that has inspired hope in so many of us, and the families of those that are unaccounted for.

Nick Valencia, thank you so much.

Of course, Fred, we're going to speak to more families of those who are unaccounted for and get their stories and bring them to you.

And obviously, there's still a lot of considerations and questions about that report that was detailed this morning that in 2018, an engineer noticed that there were serious issues that needed to be addressed in the complex.

WHITFIELD: Yes. We're going to talk a little about that, some of the concerns about the structural matter and, of course, you know, our hearts go out to the families who are just in such agony right now.

Boris, thank you so much.

So with me right now is structural engineer Dan Batista. He is familiar with this building that collapsed, having done engineer work on the Champlain Towers South condo just a few years ago.

So Dan, let me start by getting your reaction to this report that an engineer warned in 2018, of quote, "major structural damage" at the building.

[11:15:04]

GREG BATISTA, STRUCTURAL ENGINEER: Yes. The name is Greg Batista with G. Batista Engineering and Construction -- not Dan.

WHITFIELD: Oh, apologies on that.

BATISTA: But anyway -- yes I did. That's fine. That's fine. I've been called worse.

Yes, I did see the report earlier today, and it was -- if you're speaking about the 40-year recertification report, which my company has done hundreds and hundreds of these, it's the typical report that -- it's an unsurprising report of what you would see on one of these seaside condominiums with spalling and with, you know, structural issues.

And to be honest from you, you know, from just seeing the pictures themselves, nothing jumped out at me as something major. Typically, you have slabs that move and they have cracks and it seems like, at some point they had tried to, you know, fill some of the cracks with an epoxy injection which are common repairs.

But there's something insidious here. And I don't know and --

WHITFIELD: What about thoughts and concerns about the sloping concrete versus, you know, flat, uniform concrete, the pooling that comes with the flat, you know, concrete, you know, protecting the rebar, concerns about the steel components rusting or even eroding?

BATISTA: Again, the sloping of the concrete is to avoid water, and water contains chlorides that are from the ocean and chlorides seep into the concrete, and cause the spalling which is basically the reinforcing steel expanding and breaking the concrete out which is usual and customary to see at, you know, at different rates in condominiums.

But in this one, I'd say it is a little bit above average from what I'm used to seeing. But really, what baffles me, is that it would be to an extent that it would cause a major collapse.

There's something here that -- and there's lots of conjecture out there, lots of theories, and I've spoken to other engineers. I happen to be at an engineers convention here in Orlando, and that's the talk right now, this case here.

And there's everything from sinkholes to maybe somebody was performing work and maybe cut a column or something. But it's something -- I think it is something more insidious than just regular spalling.

WHITFIELD: You do? And so Greg, you know, I wonder, what is your assessment about how investigators will ever get to the bottom of what happened here, given the rubble, the debris? I mean, the complete disintegration, seemingly, of this building and this property?

And when you talk about all the things that are being entertained from structural, you know, compromise of the building to erosion to subsurface problems to sinkhole discussions. How will investigators go about pinpointing any of those contributing factors?

BATISTA: Yes, you know, the right answer to this is very carefully. You start out with your theories and you know, some of those theories are like I said, it was spalling. Another theory is that there were sinkholes. Another theory is that the ground underneath was not sufficient to support the building.

So of course, when you take these theories into consideration, once you start removing the layers and rest -- you know, along with the rescue work you send the forensic engineers with this task then they will carefully pick apart the pieces and try to piece together this unimaginable puzzle.

And if there is a sinkhole, there may be -- as they remove the rubble, there may be some indications that there was a sinkhole and, you know, just piece it together.

So all these theories are coming together. At this point, it's conjecture.

WHITFIELD: And Greg, before I let you go, I wonder what your thoughts are about express concerns officials are asking, requesting, suggesting that the residents in a near duplicate building, the sister condominium of this building that collapsed, that it be evacuated. What do you believe?

BATISTA: Well, they probably know something I don't. But out of -- out of extreme caution, that would be something that perhaps, you know, it should be seriously looked into because the sister building, it was built the same way.

I looked at the plans that were done in 1979. I saw them about a couple of hours ago, discussed them with my colleagues that are structural engineers that have been doing this for 40, 50 years.

And you know, out of an abundance of caution, I think that is a reasonable measure to take. Not knowing exactly what it is that happened.

WHITFIELD: Sure. Greg Batista, we really appreciate your expertise. Thank you so much.

BATISTA: Thank you.

[11:19:56]

WHITFIELD: All right. Coming up, families waiting for word on loved ones after Thursday's condominium collapse. We'll talk live with the daughter of a 65-year-old grandmother who remains missing. And for more information on how you might be able to help the victims

of the Surfside building collapse, go to CNN.com/impact.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF ANDY ALVAREZ, MIAMI-DADE FIRE RESCUE: Have hope. There's always hope. I was in Haiti, and eight days after we were there, we took a girl out of a collapse.

You've got to have hope. And we're doing everything that we can to bring your family member out alive.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[11:24:58]

SANCHEZ: An emotional message there from Chief Andy Alvarez, asking for hope. It's a word that we're hearing a lot of these last few days. Some of that hope coming from people who are waiting for word on loved ones. We're going to hear from some of them now.

Joining us now, the daughter of Judy Spiegel, 65-year-old beloved grandmother who is among those missing this morning. Josh Spiegel also with us.

I'm so sorry that you're dealing with this right now.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We are, too.

SANCHEZ: Yes. A moment ago, there was a shot up of the rubble, and you pointed to it and said, I hate that. I hate seeing that. When you see those pictures, what goes through your mind?

RACHEL SPIEGEL, MOTHER JUDY SPIEGEL IS MISSING: I guess, like, I think that the rubble is small. It just doesn't look like you can take a big piece up, and there's a person that's, you know, that's ready to come out. It's just small.

So I'm concerned. I'm also concerned with the fires. I don't really quite understand how the fires started. I heard the fires are deep. I don't know if it's one fire. I don't know if it's multiple fires.

But I mean the smoke is everywhere. I'm wearing my mask religiously. I'm only putting -- taking it off to talk to you. But I'm concerned. I'm very concerned.

SANCHEZ: Tell me about Judy. We were trying to talk before and we had some technical issues. And I'm glad that you're back with us.

SPIEGEL: Yea.

SANCHEZ: But you were telling me a story about her. What was she like?

SPIEGEL: My mom is just The best person in the world. She's so caring and loving. She like, loves my kids. You know, obviously, I'm dealing with my own stuff, but I also have to worry about my daughter.

I have two daughters, but one is too little to really know and understand. The picture that you just showed with S1carlet with my mom. But you know, my daughter keeps asking, you know, we told her last night that my mom is missing. And we can't find her.

She told me that, well, she's really good at playing hide and seek, so she's probably hiding in her house. Can I go there with you? I know where she hides.

And I said, we have a lot of people helping. We've told her that I've been on the news. We're doing everything that we can. But my husband told me that, you know, she asked again today, you know, have they found grandma? Has mommy found grandma? And so my husband is trying to just, you know --

SANCHEZ: Hold it together?

SPIEGEL: Yes.

SANCHEZ: Josh, I'm not sure how much you heard from the press briefing that took place just a few moments ago. Were you able to get a message that inspired hope? Did you get some of the answers you were looking for?

JOSH SPIEGEL, MOTHER JUDY SPIEGEL IS MISSING: It's tough. We got here right in the middle so we heard part of it. It doesn't seem like much progress has been made, for the sole fact that it is an extremely difficult situation.

The fact that the fires have started and really ramped up is extremely, extremely concerning. As a doctor, I've taken care of a lot of burn patients and trauma patients, and this is not good.

And I'm scared to death. I just want my mom back. And we're praying as much as possible. We just want more people to help.

So if there's anyone else that can help, that's all that we want. We love my mom. She's the most amazing person in the world. And we would literally do anything because we know that she would do anything for us.

R. SPIEGEL: Yes. Yes, I posted more pictures and I posted a -- more messages on my Instagram. I mean, people know my name. I'm sure they can find me.

J. SPIEGEL: Same here.

R. SPIEGEL: But you know, it's hard.

J. SPIEGEL: Yes.

SANCHEZ: Earlier, I was asking you about your dad, who was also here. He's just off camera. And --

R. SPIEGEL: We're looking at him. SANCHEZ: And the fact that he was out of town when everything took

place. Seeing the struggle that he's going through, what is that like?

R. SPIEGEL: I mean, it's awful. It's awful. I mean, my dad was in town for Father's Day. Josh's birthday was father's day. We were all celebrating and happy.

And you know, my dad left Monday morning and, you know, they were supposed to go to New York. They have this trip coming up, you know. It's days away, like, you know, I don't really understand it.

My heart breaks for my dad, but at the same time, I'm just so thankful that he wasn't there, too because you know, obviously, the thought of losing my mom, who is my rock and my best friend and everything. It's the most awful thing.

[11:30:01]

R. SPIEGEL: But I don't really know if I would be standing if I lost two.

J. SPIEGEL: Yes, I've never seen so much pain in all my family's eyes, and my heart is shattered.

R. SPIEGEL: I know. I know. I love you.

J. SPIEGEL: We're just trying to keep it together.

R. SPIEGEL: I know.

SANCHEZ: There is still hope. We've heard that message over and over. We heard from the fire chief moments before you were on talking about him having been in Haiti and rescuing someone after six, seven days, following the collapse of a building there back in 2010 after an earthquake.

I do want to pivot for a moment because I have to ask you about this engineer's report back in 2018 -- where there were apparently very serious deteriorating conditions in the pool deck that needed to be addressed. The report didn't specifically say that danger was immediate, but something needed to be done.

R. SPIEGEL: Right.

SANCHEZ: Did your mom ever say anything about the condition of the building to you?

R. SPIEGEL: Our parents never mentioned anything to us. But my dad's right here and in the break, we were talking about it. And they knew that there were problems but they -- they felt like if there was really a problem that's bad, that they would have been advised.

You know, yes, there were problems, and yes, they were repairing them, but then they kept putting off the repairs, and then COVID happened.

And you know -- you know my -- you know, we were talking about this, I don't know who was driving the ship and who was steering the way and who that leader was to make a determination of what the right path is, and how do we do it quickly to keep the community safe?

Because we've been here for days, my family. You know, the community is strong. There's a lot of love for everyone. And it breaks my heart if something could have been prevented. And I'm just killing myself that I didn't say on Wednesday night, mom, sleep over at my house.

SANCHEZ: How would you have known?

R. SPIEGEL: Obviously, I didn't know, but if I could go back in time and I was on the phone with my mom Wednesday night, and she often sleeps in my house. I just don't know why on that day -- she was coming to my house Thursday because I usually have ballet at my house for the kids. It breaks my heart.

SANCHEZ: Rachel and Josh, we pray for you. And our hearts go out to you, to your kids, to your dad. If there is anything that we can do to help facilitate this process in any way, please let us know. We're going to keep trying to get you answers and keep --

R. SPIEGEL: Keep saying my mom's name. Keep believing. Keep praying. That's what we're doing.

SANCHEZ: Judy Spiegel.

R. SPIEGEL: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: Thank you, Rachel and Josh, we appreciate you.

J. SPIEGEL: Thank you.

R. SPIEGEL: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: We're going to have more on the ongoing investigation and the search for survivors in just a moment.

Stay tuned to CNN for the very latest from Surfside, Florida.

[11:33:08]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Welcome back.

We're still monitoring the situation in Surfside, Florida. It has now been two days since a condo building there partially collapsed.

CNN has learned that a structural field survey completed in 2018 warned of structural damage and that the building needed major repairs.

Right now, search teams are sifting through the rubble, trying to find dozens of people still unaccounted for. At least four people died in the collapse.

We will stay on top of this story and bring you any updates as soon as they are available.

Former Minneapolis police officer, Derek Chauvin has been sentenced to 22.5 years in prison for the murder of George Floyd. Floyd's murder sparked outrage and protests across the U.S. And around the world, quite frankly.

CNN's Sara Sidner is in Minneapolis.

SARA SIDNER, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin now knows his fate for murdering George Floyd right here outside the Cup Foods.

The judge in the case, Judge Peter Cahill, being very pointed in his sentencing memo, saying that Mr. Chauvin treated Mr. Floyd without respect and denied him the dignity owed to all human beings.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JUDGE PETER CAHILL, HENNEPIN COUNTY DISTRICT COURT: The court commits you to the custody of the Commission of Corrections for a period of 270 months.

SIDNER (voice over): Former police officer Chauvin was sentenced to 22.5 years in the murder of George Floyd. Chauvin was convicted in April of second degree unintentional murder and taken back into custody today.

The sentence includes a ten-year addition to the state's sentencing guidelines but less time than the 30 years requested by prosecutors.

BEN CRUMP, FLOYD FAMILY ATTORNEY: This is the longest sentence that a police officer has ever been sentenced to in the history of the state of Minnesota.

But this should not be the exception when a black person is killed by brutality by police. It should be the norm.

SIDNER: before the sentence came down, Derek Chauvin publicly spoke to the Floyd family for the first time.

[11:39:48]

DEREK CHAUVIN, FORMER POLICE OFFICER: I want to give my condolences to the Floyd family. There's going to be some other information in the future that would be of interest. And I hope things will give you some peace of mind. Thank you.

SIDNER: Earlier, emotional victim impact statements, starting with Floyd's seven-year-old daughter.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you wish that he was still here with us?

GIANNA FLOYD, DAUGHTER OF GEORGE FLOYD: Yes. But he is.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Through his spirit?

FLOYD: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you could say anything to your daddy right now, what would it be?

FLOYD: It would be, I miss you, and I love you.

SIDNER: Floyd's brothers and nephew repeatedly demanded the maximum sentence for Chauvin, describing the harrowing impact of his murder on their lives.

BRANDON FLOYD, GEORGE FLOYD'S NEPHEW: Our family is forever broken. And one thing we cannot get back is George Floyd.

SIDNER: And George Floyd's brother, Terrence, addressed Chauvin directly.

TERRENCE FLOYD, BROTHER OF GEORGE FLOYD: What were you thinking? What was going through your head when you had your knee on my brother's neck?

SIDNER: In Chauvin's corner, after a motion to reconsider the case was dismissed earlier this morning, Chauvin's mother spoke out for the first publicly about her son, describing him as a good, thoughtful, and honorable man.

CAROLYN PAWLENTY, MOTHER OF DEREK CHAUVIN: The public will never know the loving and caring man he is, but his family does.

SIDNER: Outside of the courthouse at Cup Foods where George Floyd was murdered, a mixed reaction to the sentence, but a feeling by some that justice was done.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Say his name.

CROWD: George Floyd.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SIDNER: While there's mixed reaction from the community as to the sentence and how long it should have been, there is one thing everyone agrees on. And that is that their fight isn't over.

The sign tells you pretty much what you need to know -- one down, three to go. They're referencing the other three officers who still are charged and are awaiting trial.

Sara Sidner, CNN -- Minneapolis.

WHITFIELD: All right. Let's talk more about the verdict.

Tim Alexander joins me now with his perspective. He is a civil rights attorney, a candidate for congress in New Jersey, a former assistant district attorney and spent 27 years as a police officer.

Tim, always good to see you. So what was your immediate reaction to the sentence when you heard it. And what does it now exemplify to you? TIM ALEXANDER, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: My first reaction was that it --

I was disappointed, like so many other people. But once I processed that he had 22.5 years, that's a ten-year upward departure from the sentencing guideline, I had to conclude that that was a sea change from what we've seen in the past and that this is a good sentence in that regard.

It doesn't give the family what they were looking for. It doesn't give the prosecutors what they were looking for. But overall, it is a step -- a huge step in the right direction that we are now moving to prosecution, conviction, and sentencing of significant time, where we've seen cases around the country where we get to the conviction part, judges in courts have been giving lenient sentences to prosecutors in similar -- I'm sorry -- to police officers in similar situations.

So I think it is a good thing as it stands as a whole. I understand the family is not happy.

WHITFIELD: Yes. Bittersweet is exactly how Floyd's nephew seemed to see it yesterday. He said even, you know, this sentence was not enough -- in agreement with you. But that, perhaps, it will be influential in holding others accountable. As we were reminded in Sara's piece, there are three other Minneapolis police officers facing trial.

Do you see that the outcome for Chauvin might indeed impact these pending cases?

ALEXANDER: If I were their attorney, I would seriously have a conversation with them about working on a plea deal. I can't -- I don't know what their mindset is. I'm not going to try to get into their heads, but this is a strong -- I know the court indicated on the record that this was not intended to be a signal, but it is a signal.

It's a strong message to these other officers, that their fate is going to be similar. The evidence is the same. It's slightly varianced (ph) because of their actual involvement. But nevertheless, the facts are the same. And they're facing very similar outcome.

WHITFIELD: If, indeed, it is a signal in your view, do you see that this is a signal for police officers who have abused power, who perhaps have not been held accountable? But do you see that the outcome here is, in some way, going to be influential for those police officers who have abused power from coast to coast?

ALEXANDER: I hope so. But one of the things I'm hoping to do if I go to Congress is to encourage states to develop laws for dealing with officers who fail to intervene specifically.

So if they observe what they saw Chauvin do to Mr. Floyd, and they fail to act like those three officers did, in fact, they assisted, they are going to be facing criminal prosecution. I'd like to see that across the nation and, of course, with our federal officers.

[11:45:00] WHITFIELD: And again, as a candidate right now, you are calling for the passage of the George Floyd Justice in Police Act. This week, negotiators said that they had a framework agreement on it. What is your message to lawmakers on how to get it passed?

ALEXANDER: Get it done. This is not something that is isolated to -- it disproportionately affects African-Americans and people of color, but it affects everybody.

It -- when George Floyd died, it wasn't just African-American people of color out there protesting. It was all types of people. This act is extremely important to the nation. It should have been done long ago.

There's no reason in the world why they can't get this done on a bipartisan level. It protects everyone. My message to them -- get this done now.

WHITFIELD: A sticking had been qualified immunity for police officers. As a former police officer yourself, where are you on qualified immunity?

ALEXANDER: Qualified immunity is a court-derived doctrine that needs to go. It was a way to circumvent the Civil Rights Act, a way for courts to excuse the illegal and improper behavior of police officers. It needs to go.

I don't see an avenue for trying to fix it or repair it. Just scrap it. If officers are behaving the way they're trained, we would hope that they're going to be trained in the future. But the bottom line is, if they're doing what they swore to do and that's protect the community, they won't have the need for qualified immunity.

WHITFIELD: You have a very unique perspective on all of this, not just as a former police officer, also as a former assistant district attorney. You also yourself were shot at, assaulted, and arrested after being racially profiled by police.

So how did those experiences, particularly that of being assaulted, that experience shape you as an officer?

ALEXANDER: So, you know, the story is more than just the fact that these officers abused me. They, you know -- but for the grace of God, I was not murdered out there on the streets of Newark that day. And I had an opportunity to become a police officer. It was really my grandfather who encouraged me to continue with that career path and do the job.

So as I progressed through my 27 years, as I progressed through the ranks, I was always on alert for officers stepping over the ground. And it's not something that you have to search out. It's clear. It's plain as sight.

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: How did you manage that when it happened? When you encountered that. ALEXANDER: I reported it. I didn't hesitate. I reported it. I stopped

it, and I reported it. It's in writing when I did it. So my thing was --

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: And then what did that make it -- what was life like for you as one in blue who crossed the line by doing that?

ALEXANDER: You know, it's a great question because when I did it the first time, the first time I wrote like a three-page memo about a supervisor who was clearly racist, in my opinion, and I laid out the evidence as I would in any case.

That memo, which was sworn by my command staff that it was just for internal, it was just to explain my position and why I didn't want to work with this individual, it became known throughout the county. I was a county detective.

I was fine. I was ostracized for a moment but when people start realizing what's happening, I was brought back into the fold. I had friends who I trusted, I had friends who never trusted me -- or coworkers who never trusted me.

So the bottom line is I was ok with that. Because that means that if you can't trust me, that means you may do something that I ought not to be a witness to because I will report it. And that's the way I had my career. And when my daughter decided to become a police officer, that's what I instilled in her.

WHITFIELD: All right. Tim Alexander, we really appreciate your perspective. Thank you so much for being with us today.

ALEXANDER: Thank you so much.

And just I'd like to say, my heart goes to the people of Surfside, the community, the families, and I'm certainly praying for all the victim there.

WHITFIELD: Yes. As we all are. Thank you so much.

ALEXANDER: Thank you. Take care.

WHITFIELD: Still ahead, the debate over COVID booster shots and how they would be administered.

We're back in a moment.

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WHITFIELD: This week the World Health Organization met to discuss one of the most widely asked questions regarding the COVID vaccine: will a booster shot be required.

CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): On December 14th, a nurse in New York became the first American vaccinated for COVID-19 outside the clinical trial. That was six months ago.

Now the discussion is all about boosters. Will we need them and if so, when.

DR. ALBERT BOURLA, CEO, PFIZER: There will be a need for booster somewhere between 8 and 12 months.

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: There's no set rule now that says in six months or in a year we're going to get -- we're going to require a boost.

DR. AMESH ADALJA, SENIOR SCHOLAR, JOHNS HOPKINS CENTER FOR HEALTH SECURITY: It is frustrating that people want to know how long immunity lasts but it's just going to take time.

DR. GUPTA: Dr. Amesh Adalja is an infectious disease physician with expertise in preparing for pandemics. He has served in government panels responding to public health emergencies, not unlike the one we have been in for the past year and a half.

(on camera): What are you looking for as maybe some early clues that we would need that booster shot?

DR. ADALJA: I want to know what's happening to these patients clinically. Are they getting break through infections and are those breakthrough infections severe enough to land them in the hospital.

DR. GUPTA (voice over): With some diseases like yellow fever, most people get lifetime protection from a vaccine. But for others like influenza, we roll up our sleeves every year. Even among coronaviruses, it ranges.

[11:54:53]

DR. ADALJA: The first SARS in 2003, it appears that those individuals who are infected naturally did develop long-standing immunity. It is a little bit different with the community acquired coronaviruses because they're always causing common colds that may maybe more tenacious to be able to cause reinfections.

DR. GUPTA: Booster studies are under way. In some cases, boosting with a different COVID-19 vaccine or one tailored to a variant.

(on camera): Should we be worried that there will be a particular variant that may start to escape the protection of these vaccines?

DR. ADALJA: I think it is very hard for a virus to mutate in such a way and to get the perfect mutations to be able to completely evade a vaccine, to make it worthless. DR. GUPTA (voice over): at the same time, we are hearing more and more

good news about just how robust immunity to COVID-19 might be. Six months out, both Pfizer and Moderna still have more than 90 percent efficacy against COVID-19, and even among people who've been infected, we are still seeing evidence of immunity a year later, and it's not just antibodies we are talking about.

DR. ADALJA: The antibody arm that everybody knows about, then there's a whole other arm which is called cell-mediated immunity. You will find few cells that are reactive to COVID-19, long after infection. And those may be really instrumental for how we determine when a booster is necessary.

DR. GUPTA: But there maybe some who may benefit from a booster sooner than others, like immunocompromised people. A recent study found that a third shot provided a boost to a small group of organ transplant recipients who had low anti-body responses, including a third of them who had no detectible antibodies after the first two doses.

But for many of us, the benefit is less clear cut, an issue that becomes even more complicated when you start to look around the world.

DR. ADALJA: If you've got this pandemic raging out of control in many countries where they can't get single doses into people, it really is going to be difficult to justify giving people a third dose.

DR. GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And still ahead, an engineer warning of, quote, "major structural damage" at a Florida condominium complex years before one of the buildings collapsed.

Our live team coverage from Surfside, Florida continues in just a moment.

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