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Justice Department Asks Supreme Court To Intervene In Abortion Pill Case; Police Speak On Arrest In Stabbing Death Of Cash App Founder Bob Lee; Lawsuit: Video Shows Mentally Ill Man Died After 20 Days In Solitary; Jamie Foxx Hospitalized After Medical Complication. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired April 13, 2023 - 15:30   ET

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

[15:30:00]

ERICA HILL, CNN HOST: Any moment now, the Florida state House is expected to vote on a bill that would effectively ban abortions after six weeks. Often women don't even know they're pregnant at that point. Opponents say the bill, which has the support of Republican Governor Ron DeSantis would effectively end legal abortion in the state.

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN HOST: Now this is all happening as the Justice Department is asking the Supreme Court now to intervene in a legal battle over the widely used abortion pill mifepristone. An appeals court overnight ruled that the medication will remain available but can no longer be sent to patients by mail.

A Texas judge on Friday had ordered the FDA to halt its approval of the drug. CNN senior political analyst Gloria Borger joins us now for more on this. So gloria, what's notable is the silence from most Republicans on what in theory would be seen as a victory for them. Restricting abortion access is something that they have been fighting for decades now, and here it is before them. And yet nothing.

GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: They're like the dog that caught the bus.

GOLODRYGA: Yes. What do you make of it?

BORGER: Well, I think you're not hearing them being vocal. There are some Republican candidates, Mike Pence, for example, who's very vocal on this issue. Wants to nationalize antiabortion laws. But for independent suburban voters, there are two issues that don't help Republicans. And that is Donald Trump, who is in the headlines right now and the issue of abortion. They know that seven out of 10 Americans believe that the abortion pill should be readily available. Most women in this country who do you opt for abortion used the abortion pill. They also know that abortion pills are used for miscarriage.

And right now, they don't want to get in the middle of this fight. They want to let this go to the Supreme Court and let the Supreme Court handle it. They won the Dobbs decision, and now the party is kind of stuck. They're not quite sure what to do because they need these voters in any kind of a general election. And this is an issue that is really motivating for suburban women in particular and independent voters in general.

HILL: And we saw, you know this was really there was a lot of attention on this post midterms about the impact that the issue had. We just saw it as a major flashpoint. And yet again, an issue that brought people out in Wisconsin last week. Did conservative Republicans overplay their hand at some point, Gloria?

BORGER: Well, I think they -- I think they have, but they won. They won. They won in the Supreme Court. And at a certain point some Republicans, in fact, some Democrats were saying, be careful what you wish for, because when you get it, it's going to backfire. And what we see happening around the country right now is that the country has changed on the issue of abortion dramatically. And that the Republican Party is split on the issue.

I mean, you do have as I was mentioning candidates like Mike Pence, for example, Tim Scott, for example, who are going to say, you know, we've got to -- we've got to be anti abortion -- although Tim Scott is a little more moderate on the issue, then Mike Pence. But now you have this five week ban in Florida. As you pointed out earlier, most women don't know they're pregnant at five weeks.

And so, you have a country that is overwhelmingly in supportive of women being allowed to make the decision. As I said 7 in 10, Americans support the use of an abortion pill.

GOLODRYGA: You could also describe Republicans as having overplayed their hand in the Tennessee legislative statehouse there, given what transpired over the past week. We just saw these two state representatives reinstated, all this issue of surrounding gun reform legislation. Gloria, we did see the governor earlier this week signed an executive order that would strengthen background checks. It's a step in the right direction -- Gun -- gun reform activists would say.

Do you think this is a sign of something that we could see potentially other Republican states do as well or do you think this is sort of an isolated issue? And perhaps sadly, because this governor had close family connections and friends who were victims to these, the mass shooting?

BORGER: Well, you know, after Parkland -- if you'll recall in Florida -- Ron DeSantis had a -- signed a red flag law. So perhaps, unfortunately, it's more likely when it hits home in your own state, is that the governor is more likely to do something, although that hasn't happened in Texas after Uvalde, for example.

I think that for some reason, and I've been trying to figure it out. Gun reform is not as motivating factor for voters as other issues like abortion has proven itself to be and I don't know that after all of these mass shootings, whether finally some kind of compromise on gun reform, whether it's an assault weapons ban or -- will finally get approved. It's hard to understand why this hasn't been more motivating.

And maybe after what we've seen in the deaths of children, it will become that way. And maybe we saw that in Tennessee a little bit, but it comes down to the state legislatures here. And if the state legislatures are as polarized as they are right now, I'm not quite sure what happens on a national level. No one I know what it would say, oh sure, we're going to get an assault weapons ban. That's not about to happen.

HILL: Gloria Borger, always good to talk to you. Thank you.

BORGER: Thanks, guys.

HILL: I want to take you now to San Francisco, where we're hearing from the SFPD, an update. There's been an arrest in the stabbing death of Cash App founder Bob Lee. Let's listen in.

LONDON BREED, SAN FRANCISCO MAYOR: -- and the investigators who worked tirelessly to ensure that this case was handled appropriately. And, in fact, to be clear, that every single case involving any homicide or any violence is always brought the same attention is brought to ensure that justice is served. And working hand in hand with our district attorney has been the incredible work that they've done together to ensure that this case was handled appropriately.

And meanwhile, we know that this has been a high-profile case, and there have been a lot of speculation and a lot of things said about our city and crime in the city. But these two leaders have been extremely responsible in their handling of this case. And we appreciate their hard work to ensure that Bob Lee's family receives justice and anything that happens to anyone in this city receives the same justice.

So, at this time, I would like to turn it over to Bill Scott to provide you all with an update.

[15:40:00]

CHIEF BILL SCOTT, SAN FRANCISCO POLICE: Thank you, mayor. And good morning, everybody. First of all, I'd like to express my deepest condolences to the family and friends of Mr. Robert Lee, known as Bob Lee. I'm going to be brief on the details. But here's the summary in the update.

On April 4th, 2023, at approximately 2:30 a.m. San Francisco police officers from southern station responded to the 300 block of main street for report of a stabbing. Officers arrived on scene and located -- and located the victim, later identified as 43-year-old Robert Lee, suffering from an apparent stab wound. Officers rendered eight and summoned medics to the scene. Mr. Lee was transported to Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital with life threatening injuries. Despite efforts by first responders and medical personnel, Mr. Lee died from his injuries.

The San Francisco Police Department homicide detail responded and took over the investigation. Homicide investigators developed information that identified the suspect as 38-year-old Nima Momeni, of Emeryville, California. We can confirm that Mr. Lee and Mr. Momeni knew each other. However, we will not be able to provide further details at this time regarding the evidence that confirms that information. This morning members of the San Francisco Police Department's

investigations bureau and tactical unit served several search warrants and arrest and arrest warrant in San Francisco and Emeryville, California. Mr. Momeni was taken into custody without incident in Emeryville, California. He was transported to the San Francisco County Jail and booked on one charge of murder. California penal code section 187a.

I'd like to remind everybody that this is still an open and ongoing investigation, and we will not be able to provide further details at this point. Before I turn this over to our district attorney, I want to assure everyone that our investigators have been working tirelessly to make this arrest and bring this case to justice for the Lee family and his loved ones. Just as we would for every homicide that occurs in this city.

I would like to thank homicide investigators led by Detective Brett Dettmer (ph) and Detective Thomas McWilliams (ph), also Lieutenant Calvin Sanders and our entire homicide team who have worked not only in this case, but all of our open cases.

You know, I said from the start that I have every confidence in the men and women and the members that work homicide. They have an 85 percent clearance rate year today and that is expected to go to 92 percent because we just solved a 1994 case yesterday as well. We never give up finding justices -- justice for the victims in this city. And I want to make sure that everybody knows how hard the men and women and members of this department work to keep this city safe.

With that said just a reminder. We won't be able to provide any details in this case today. But this is an ongoing investigation and we still have work to do. And our job is to provide the best evidence possible to this district attorney and her team. So, we can bring this case in any other homicide, a crime in the city, to justice. So, with that I'd like to turn it over to our district attorney Brooke Jenkins. We'll take questions after.

BROOKE JENKINS, SAN FRANCISCO DISTRICT ATTORNEY: So, as you're aware, I'm Brooke Jenkins, the district attorney here in San Francisco. And I want to thank you first, all for being here. I also want to start off by first acknowledging the pain and anguish that Mr. Lee's family and friends are currently experiencing. There is nothing worse than a parent having to bury their child. Or a young child having to bury their parent. My prayers go out to them during this very difficult time.

I too want to commend the San Francisco Police Department for their work in identifying who committed this heinous crime. They worked around the clock to solve this case. While in some cases we do immediately have a suspect, that was not the situation here. As a result of their hard work, Mr. Le's killer has been identified, arrested and now will be brought to justice.

As a former prosecutor in our homicide unit, I've personally worked on cases with the detectives that solved this case. They are dedicated to justice and have further demonstrated their commitment to ensuring that San Franciscans do get justice when something like this happens.

[15:45:00]

I am here today to formally announce the charges against Mr. Nima Momeni for the murder of Bob Lee. The specific charges that we are filing today include murder in violation of penal code section 187, as well as a special allegation, also known as an enhancement, alleging that this murder was committed with a knife.

As for the next steps -- as I know you all are eager to follow this case -- Mr. Momeni is expected to be arraigned in Department 10 of the Hall of Justice tomorrow afternoon at 1:30 p.m. My office will be filing a motion to detain Mr. Momeni without bail to ensure that he remains in custody during the pendency of this case due to the obvious and severe public safety risk that we believe that he poses to the public.

I want to end by saying thank you to Mr. Lee's family and the people of San Francisco for being patient with law enforcement during the course of this investigation. I know that everyone has wanted answers since this tragedy happened. While nothing can heal the pain of Mr. Lee's loss.

Thank you for putting your trust in the San Francisco Police Department and now in my office to ensure that we seek justice in this case. I acknowledge and understand how the --

HILL: As we've listening in there to an update from San Francisco that is the San Francisco District Attorney there, Brooke Jenkins, who announced that one charge has been filed of murder, along with a special allegation, knowing that that murder happened with a knife. This is involving the death of Bob Lee. We are told by the SFPD chief that that suspect was taken into custody is 38-year-old Nima Momeni.

Now the chief said that the two know each other but said they would not be giving any details of the evidence in terms of how they know that. But again, Nima Momeni taken into custody in the death of Bob Lee charged with one count of murder. We'll continue to follow those updates.

All right, well, a lawsuit has just been filed by the estate of a man who died after spending 20 days in solitary confinement. This was at the Jackson County Jail in Indiana. 29-year-old Joshua McLemore was arrested for pulling a nurse's hair while being treated at a nearby medical facility. CNN obtained edited video clips from the jail cell's ceiling, mounted surveillance camera from the family's lawyers, and we must warn you, they are disturbing.

HILL: Now according to the lawsuit, McLemore had a history of schizophrenia and substance abuse and was experiencing a mental health crisis at the time of his arrest. He was placed then, it alleges, in a windowless isolation cell where he remained naked and confined for the next 20 days. Attorneys say he lost then 45 in less than three weeks, and an autopsy revealed his immediate cause of death was multiple organ failure due to refusal to eat or drink with altered mental status due to untreated schizophrenia. Now CNN has reached out to the Jackson County Sheriff's Office for comment, along with Advanced Correctional Healthcare, Incorporated.

CNN political commentator Van Jones is joining us now. He is also, as many of you likely know, an advocate for criminal justice reform. The details here really surprised me. So many of us these details that are alleged in this lawsuit, Van. What more -- what do you know about this? And we're -- were you surprised when you when you heard about this?

VAN JONES, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, I was heartbroken, but unfortunately not surprised. Unfortunately, in our country, the abuse of solitary confinement has reached really epidemic proportions. You know, the United Nations defines solitary confinement for more than 14 days as torture. And yet there are people in the United States who are in solitary confinement for literally years on end.

Having a schizophrenic episode should not be a death sentence in this country, having mental health issues should not be a death sentence in this country. This is particularly appalling given the fact that there was like literally no medical attention given to him, even though he wasn't eating, wasn't drinking. It's particularly appalling. But I think people would be shocked to know how many people find themselves in situations like this and worse for even longer. This particular family is just in a better position to bring forward the case.

GOLODRYGA: Yes, he ultimately lost 45 pounds during his stay there. But as you noted, Van, he never saw a doctor or mental health professionals while he was being kept there. The lawsuit has been filed by his family. What legal recourse do they have?

JONES: Well, I mean obviously, a civil suit here for wrongful death is going to go forward. I think if there's ever been a case of wrongful death when somebody you know, pull somebody's hair and winds up 20 days with no medical attention, losing weight, not eating and dies. I don't know a more open and shut case for wrongful death. But I hope they asked for more than just monetary damages.

[15:50:00]

At some point, we've got to go for a systemic change. This is brute -- brutal, brutal torture. That the Mandela rules -- the United Nations says the psychological impact of the compounding, the psychological impact of prolonged indefinite solitary confinement is the equivalent of torture. That's not -- when the U.N. says torture, the world should listen.

We are torturing people right now in the United States by keeping people in these conditions. And it's not just people who have mental health issues. The routine use of solitary confinement in our prisons, in our jails and detention centers is one of the worst aspects of the criminal justice system. It's one of the worst aspects of our mental health care system if that's called -- considered mental health care. That's not really care. And we've got to have a bigger conversation about it.

I hope that this case becomes, you know, the beginning of a national conversation about the abuse of this particular way of treating people. It is heartbreaking. But if you're familiar with anything about this system it is not shocking that we have people being treated this way in United States.

GOLODRYGA: It's heartbreaking that you're describing a case that it's likely not an outlier as well. Van Jones, thank you so much. We appreciate it, we'll continue to follow this terrible story. And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: We are learning some new details about actor Jamie Foxx's health scare. Now he's currently in the hospital after what's being referred to as a medical complication. Chloe Melas joins us now with the latest. So, Chloe, what else are we learning?

[15:55:00]

CHLOE MELAS, CNN ENTERTAINMENT REPORTER: Listen, this has been a situation that so many people all over the world are sending prayers and thoughts to Jamie Foxx. His daughter taking to Instagram to announce the news yesterday evening, saying that her father was on the road to recovery.

Now what we know is that Jamie Foxx is currently hospitalized and under medical observation for a medical complication. Now his team and his family are not saying exactly what happened, but we know that he's in a hospital in Georgia receiving excellent care. That he's alert. He's communicative. He's talking.

We know that he has been in Georgia filming a movie for Netflix called "Back in Action." Now Netflix declined to comment. This movie also stars Glenn Close, Cameron Diaz, and we know that this incident did not occur on the set. We also know that Jamie Foxx was not transported to the hospital via an ambulance. It sounds like he went on his own accord with someone who took him there.

So again, serious enough for him to be in the hospital and under observation, but the good news says he's alert. He's talking and in good spirits.

HILL: All right. Well, we'll focus on that good news. Chloe appreciate the update. Thank you.

GOLODRYGA: And thank you so much for joining us on these busy two hours. I'm Bianna Golodryga.

HILL: And I'm Erica Hill. Stay tuned. "THE LEAD" with Jake Tapper starts after a quick break.