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TN GOP-Led House Expels 2 Black Dems Over Gun Reform Protest, Fails To Oust White Colleague; Interview With State Rep. Gloria Johnson (D-TN); FL Sheriff: 2 Suspects Arrested, 1 On The Loose In Teen Murders; Sheriff: "There Is No Honor Among Thieves"; Oklahoma A.G. Files Motion To Vacate Death Row Inmate's Conviction. Aired 2:30- 3p ET

Aired April 07, 2023 - 14:30   ET

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

[14:30:00]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: CNN national correspondent, Ryan Young, is in Nashville with more on this.

So what is next, Ryan?

RYAN YOUNG, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, what a difference 24 hours makes. I mean, this entire plaza was full of people, protesters who were getting their voices heard yesterday, even around this time.

And really there's shock waves coming through the state right now, as people sort of get their heads around exactly what happened here?

We're thinking about what happens next with Charles Uffelman, who works for Organize Tennessee.

You said there's going to be a lot of action come Monday. What are the plans coming forward for Monday in terms of these two lawmakers specifically was actually action today?

CHARLES UFFELMAN, ORGANIZE TENNESSEE: There's actually action today over at Fisk University, one of our HBCUs. There's going to be a rally to support the Tennessee Three there at 4:30. There's going to be folks coming in on Monday as well.

We have to remember that this started as a protest against gun violence. March for Our Lives bringing thousands of students here to the capital. And the Tennessee Three supporting them.

So we're going to continue advocating for to end gun violence.

YOUNG: Do you believe there's a chance -- and there's a lot of movement about this, whether not these two lawmakers may get their seats back.

UFFELMAN: It does. The metro Nashville/Davidson County Council, they're going to meet at 4:30. It looks like -- just on Twitter, just council members that have posted it, there's enough votes to appoint him. The question mark is Shelby County. I'm getting messages that Shelby

County commission, who will appoint, will decide, and they're -- they're not set yet.

I had a conversation with the coordinator of elections before all this happened. And I asked, will they be reappointed again? And he, with a big smile, said it's up to the House who serves in the House.

So the question mark is, how will Republicans up there on the Hill respond?

YOUNG: My last question. We talked about this just a little bit. Racially speaking, as someone who has lived in this state almost your entire life, what message do you think this sent yesterday with how the state will be viewed moving forward?

UFFELMAN: This was an attack on democracy. And, you know, I'm a southerner. I grew up on a farm in the south and all the good and bad that goes with that. And we know we have a lot to work on together.

It's going to take us working together. That's why I do my work with Organized Tennessee, is protecting elections, protecting democracy. And this was flat-out an assault on democracy.

And it's not a coincidence that they removed the two black men and kept the white woman. And so we have to keep watching.

I know the eye of the media is just a moment and a flash in the pan, but we're going to have elections this summer and Organize Tennessee and other groups are going to be there protecting these elections, protecting the right to vote not.

Not just in the Capitol Hill where they're removing folks, but out there in the ballot box as well.

YOUNG: Thank you so much. I appreciate your time.

Of course, everyone's thinking about what may happen on Monday. We're told more protests will come.

We'll also see whether or not some of these members will get their seats back and something that will play out again on television -- Fred?

WHITFIELD: We shall see.

All right, Ryan Young. We're going to talk more about all this right now. Thank you so much, Ryan.

Joining me right now is the third Tennessee Democratic state representative who faced expulsion, Gloria Johnson.

But of course, Ms. Johnson, you -- your job was saved.

Good to see you. I know you were in the vehicle because your soon to be meeting with

the Vice President Kamala Harris, who is on her way to Nashville. What do you want to share with her? What do you want to hear from the vice president?

STATE REP. GLORIA JOHNSON (D-TN): I just want to talk about the immediacy of getting solutions for gun violence. I think that we have to continue to lift that issue.

And I'm so very proud of this young generation, who are organizing and fighting and working so hard. They're showing up and they're speaking up at the capital.

And it's wonderful to see so many people united. Toddlers, teens and their parents and college students just really coming out, saying we want to be protected.

And that is what the three of us were trying to do and trying to bring attention to that on our House floor. And that's what we're going to keep bringing attention to.

WHITFIELD: And you saw that interview that we just played a portion of it representative face in the Republican last night who is looking at this less of addressing the issue of gun violence and more of the issue of decorum.

And he said, you know, all it would have taken was an apology that would have made a difference as in to save your two colleagues jobs. Do you believe that?

JOHNSON: You know, I -- he can say that now, but that certainly wasn't the tone of the questioning and what we were hearing in that room.

WHITFIELD: Meaning?

JOHNSON: Meaning, they were -- they were talking down. They were rude. It was like they were -- they were prosecutors. But then they didn't allow us to build a defense.

They allowed themselves to bring video. But we were told we could not bring video. We have no idea, you know, who filmed that video, who edited that video. They promised it was only video from the floor.

[14:34:59]

But as it turned out, it had video from other days in it. And so they were just honest throughout the procedure.

And we didn't really find out much about the procedure until six o'clock the night before.

WHITFIELD: And afterwards, you said you think the distinction as to why you got to keep your job and Mr. Pearson and Jones did not was because of the color of your skin.

After saying that publicly, have you heard anything more from your colleagues there about why they voted the way they did, why they spared you your job?

JOHNSON: I kept hearing from some across the aisle that they that they didn't feel like we showed enough - weren't apologetic, weren't conciliatory, that sort of thing.

But, you know, I knew I was breaking a rule. But, because they're not following Democratic processes, that's why we felt that we had to break the rule.

And we were not allowed -- we were silenced on the floor multiple times that day. We were not allowed to address those protesters, thousands of protesters outside that were there for safety for their children.

We just wanted to welcome them, acknowledge they were there, say that we saw them, we cared about their issue and we would fight hard for gun sense legislation.

That's all we wanted to do. We weren't allowed on the floor, and so we just decided to take those few minutes to be able to do that.

WHITFIELD: And if you don't mind, if you could explain the process as to how this metro council, through metro council, whether it be in Davidson County or in Shelby County, how the positions might be restored, potentially, for Jones and Pearson.

JOHNSON: Yes, what it does is, the first part of the process is it goes to those metro councils or commissions and they will appoint a replacement.

And yes, they are -- it's completely allowable for them to a point the former representatives.

There's some question as to the law as it relates to -- it's really undefined. There's nothing in there that says it can't be in the General Assembly, the same 113th General Assembly, which we are in now.

But there are some lawyers who maintain that it can't be in the same General Assembly. But other lawyers will say it doesn't say that.

(CROSSTALK)

JOHNSON: So it's going to be a legal question.

WHITFIELD: Yes. I know there's some hope on your behalf. And many supporters of you, of Justin Pearson that they will be --their jobs will be really reappointed, restored.

So I wonder, too, on the issue that your job was spared, you know, is there any guilt that you feel that you were spared? You've worked a long time with them. You all know each other well. You have been a part of the same movement.

Or do you feel like this further propels you to take advantage of the opportunity to keep your job, to try to provoke change? JOHNSON: I -- so when I was standing there, you know, I just started

to walk off of the floor, just like Justin did after he was expelled, and they're like, no, you they you won the vote, you won the vote. And I was like, I can't -- you know, when all I started saying, but that's not ok because of Justin.

And so, for me, I took no satisfaction at that point for winning because I was so concerned about Justin Jones, who had -- who had gone before me. His -- his resolution went before mine.

And I just broke down in tears because it just mortified me. He made such a beautiful defense.

And you know, after his -- I was like, oh, my goodness, I can never be that eloquent, that articulate that you know, powerful. What a powerful speaker. And then Justin Pearson after that.

But when you heard the tone of the questioning in there on how they were questioned and how I was questioned, it was clear what that was about. It was so clear.

And they -- the thing was they were so good at pinpointing it out and hitting it directly. I was so proud of them.

We need their voices in the legislature. And I'll do everything I can to help them get back.

WHITFIELD: Yes. And throughout, they exemplified a poise, power and real poetic.

And I was going to ask you about those tears that I saw yesterday, and what -- what was behind those tears that -- you know, you visibly were shaken, upset.

[14:40:06]

But now you're -- you're also saying you're going to work hard to try to help them get back into that place?

JOHNSON: Yes. Yes, Justin Jones, when his - in Nashville, it's more Democratic. In Knoxville, is very Republican.

So my race was in the general election against a Republican. His biggest race was he didn't even have a challenger in the Democratic general election. His big race was in the primary.

So after he run -- won his primary, he committed to come to Knoxville. And he came multiple times to Knoxville to help me knock doors and all of that.

And I said, Justin, I'm going to be there for you in Nashville. I will go to Memphis for Justin Pearson and do everything that I can to help them come back.

Because I truly believe that those voices are desperately needed in our General Assembly, who is not listening to a large part of the population in Tennessee.

WHITFIELD: Tennessee State Representative Gloria Johnson, thanks so much for your time. All the best on your upcoming visit with the vice president.

JOHNSON: Absolutely. Thank you. Thanks for having me on, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Absolutely. Thanks for being with us.

All right, two suspects in custody and a third is on the run in connection to the murder of those three teens in central Florida. What else we're learning, next.

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[14:45:55]

WHITFIELD: Two juveniles, one as young as 12 years old, are now under arrest in connection with the murders of three teenagers in a small central Florida community. A third juvenile suspect is still on the loose.

CNN's Carlos Suarez is following this story for us.

Carlos, the Marion County sheriff held a lengthy news conference earlier today. What did he disclose?

CARLOS SUAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: While the sheriff's office there detailed the arrest of these two minors, as you mentioned, including a 12-year-old boy, they are still looking for a third suspect in this case.

That's suspect has been identified as 16-year-old Taj Bruton. Authorities believe that he is still in Marion County, which is about a 90-minute drive north of Orlando. And they do not believe that he poses a danger to the community.

The two other suspects that were arrested, they are minors as well. We're talking about a 17-year-old boy, as well as a 12-year-old boy.

Now according to the sheriff's office, it appears it's their understanding that all three suspects, as well as all three victims, they were involved in robberies and burglaries in the area leading up to this shooting that happened last week.

In fact, they believe the group was together and took part in one holdup before something went terribly wrong. It's unclear exactly, at this hour, what happened inside of that car that led to these three suspects shooting and killing these three victims.

It is also unclear at this hour whether the three minors are going to be charged as adults.

Here now is the sheriff announcing these arrests. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILLY WOODS, SHERIFF, MARION COUNTY, FL, SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: Basically, simple terms, there is no honor among thieves -- thieves. And at some point, these three individuals turned on our three victims and murdered them, two of them, right there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SUAREZ: On whether the state attorney's office in Marion County is going to charge the -- charge these three minors as adults, the state attorney's office there tells me, quote, "We're aggressively going to pursue this prosecution."

But they could not provide any additional comment, considering they are still looking for that third suspect -- Fred?

WHITFIELD: Carlos Suarez, we'll leave it there. Thanks so much.

A California grand jury indicted a dermatologist on charges of repeatedly trying to poison her husband with liquid drain cleaner, and it was all captured on camera. Much more on the stunning allegations straight ahead.

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[14:53:00]

WHITFIELD: All right, major new developments today for a man who has spent the last 25 years on Oklahoma's death row. Inmate Richard Glossip could soon see his murder conviction and death row sentence tossed out and a new trial ordered.

Oklahoma's attorney general filed a motion asking for a new trial. Glossip was convicted of ordering the 1997 killing of his boss and sentenced to death.

The A.G.'s move comes on the same day he released the findings of an independent counsel's review of Glossip's case.

CNN's Ed Lavandera is with us now.

Ed, Glossip is expected to be executed next month. What more can you tell us about the A.G.'s sudden actions in this case?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, yes, you're right, Fredricka, several weeks away from Richard Glossip's next scheduled extra execution.

But this is a case that has garnered bipartisan support in the state of Oklahoma for it to be re-examined.

And yesterday, after the results and the findings of an independent counsel appointed by the attorney general in Oklahoma, the attorney general there in that state, that he can no longer stand behind the murder conviction of Richard Glossip. In a statement, he says, "This is not to say that I believe Richard

Glossip is innocent. However, it is critical that Oklahomans have absolute faith that the death penalty is administered fairly and with certainty."

"Considering everything I know about this case, I do not believe that justice is served by executing a man based on the testimony of a compromised witness."

And what the attorney general is referring to there is the co- defendant, other man who was convicted in this 1997 murder. And according to these reports, there are serious doubts of whether or not Justin Sneed, who is the other defendant, was telling the truth.

The story behind all of this is that Sneed testified against Glossip, saying that he was hired to carry out this murder. But there have been several instances, that supporters of Glossip say, where Sneed has tried to recant that testimony.

[14:55:04]

And the independent counsel report also states that there was evidence withheld from the defense team along the way.

So all of this adding up for the attorney general to push the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals and ask that court for a new trial.

Now the Court of Criminal Appeals has several times refused to hear new evidence. But with the attorney general now on Richard Glossip's side, this could definitely change that dynamic here.

We spoke with Glossip's attorney earlier today, who said that Glossip felt relieved that someone was finally listening to his pleas of innocence and requests for a new trial.

WHITFIELD: All right, Ed Lavandera, thank you so much.

All right, new information released in the death of Cash App founder, Bob Lee, including the release of surveillance video on the night he was stabbed. We're live in San Francisco with the latest.

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