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Biden And Trump To Hold Dueling Campaign Events In Georgia Today; United Nations Warns Four Out Of Five Households In Gaza Without Safe Drinking Water; Aid Groups Warn Of Critical Levels Of Malnutrition And Dehydration In Gaza; Countries Planning New Maritime Aid Corridor Into Gaza; MI School Shooter's Father Accused Of Making Threats From Jail; Armed Men Attack Police Stations As Haiti's Violence Spirals; Families Mark First-Ever Hostage And Wrongful Detainee Day. Aired 12-1p ET

Aired March 09, 2024 - 12:00   ET

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

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: So, two years on, tens of thousands of Ukrainians are dead, and the fact remains that Ukraine's ability to survive and stave off Putin depends entirely on politicians in Washington.

Remember, you can watch all of my interviews with the Oscar nominees online @amanpour.com. And you can also find all of our shows online as podcast at cnn.com/podcast, as well as all other major platforms.

I'm Christiane Amanpour in London. Thank you for watching, and see you again next week.

[12:00:40]

RAHEL SOLOMON, CNN HOST: Good afternoon, and thanks for joining me. I'm Rahel Solomon. Fredricka Whitfield has the day off.

We begin this hour with the Biden-Trump rematch in full swing. Fresh off, his State of the Union address. President Biden is now on his way to the battleground state of Georgia. And that's exactly where a presumptive Republican nominee, Donald Trump will be today.

Their dueling campaign events will be happening in just a few hours. Biden is holding an event in Atlanta, and Trump is holding a rally in Rome. That's located in the northwest part of the state.

Now, Georgia is a key battleground state that Biden won in 2020 by less than a percentage point and is the only swing state among primary contests happening on Tuesday.

We do have a team of correspondents covering today's dueling campaign events. Steve Contorno is with the Trump campaign. But let's actually begin with Camila DeChalus. She is in Wilmington, Delaware. That's where the President is about to head to Georgia.

Camila, good to see you. So, what can we expect what messages do we think Biden is trying to highlight in this first campaign swing after the State of the Union? CAMILA DECHALUS, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, Biden really wants to convey to voters some of the big things he's done while he's been in office. He wants to talk about how he's created thousands of jobs in the U.S., how he's tried to lower the high cost of prescription drugs, and how he's invested in public safety. Those are some of the things that he wants to highlight.

But he also wants to lay out some of the things he wants to do if he gets reelected for a second term. Now, another thing you're going to see Biden talk about is his former predecessor, and just really stressed what's at stake in this next upcoming election cycle. And he is going to talk about Trump. He did that yesterday.

He mentioned him about eight times when he gave a speech in Philadelphia, and he's going to talk about how he thinks that Trump poses a threat to democracy and how Biden himself -- how he's better suited to be reelected for a second term.

SOLOMON: Yes, we've heard him use the word predecessor, I think 13 times in State of the Union. So, he was -- his presence was certainly felt there.

Camila, before departing, President Biden signed several funding bills to avoid a government shutdown. What's the latest there?

DECHALUS: That's right, he signed these bills. And he also took the time to thank congressional leaders for coming together to pass this package of bills.

Now, there is still a lot of things that Congress needs to get done. He wants -- Biden has made it very clear that he wants lawmakers to pass the National Security supplemental package that would provide additional funding for Ukraine. And he is saying that is now the next priority that he wants lawmakers to come together in order to pass.

SOLOMON: All right. Camila, thank you.

Let's now go to Steve Contorno, who is covering Trump's Georgia rally. So, Steve, this is Trump's first rally since Nikki Haley essentially dropped out of the race. What are we expecting to hear from him today?

STEVE CONTORNO, CNN REPORTER: Well, Rahel, in many ways, former President Trump has been acting as presumptive nominee for weeks. And so, I think, we can expect him to keep continue to hit on the themes he has on the campaign trail since the New Hampshire primary, mainly the economy, crime, and the situation at the southern border.

And he will deliver that message today in the northwest part of the state. This is a very conservative part of the state. It's represented in Congress by Marjorie Taylor Greene, who of course, is coming off of those clashes during the State of the Union address with Joe Biden. She will be here at this rally today which the Biden campaign criticize. Saying, you are choosing to kick off the general election race with one of the most conservative and, in their words, extreme members of the Republican Party. They also were critical of Trump for meeting last night at Mar-a-Lago with Hungarian leader Viktor Orban. Take a listen to what Trump said about that meeting.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There is nobody that's better or smarter or a better leader than Viktor Orban. He's fantastic. He's been -- he's been the only prime minister of Hungary, and does a great job. He is a non-controversial figure because he said this is the way it's going to be, and that's the end of it.

Well, he is the boss, and he now, he is a great leader, a fantastic leader in Europe and all over the world. I respecting --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CONTORNO: Orban, of course, he is a controversial figure. He is someone who is considered a right-wing populist. He has caused trouble for several of the U.S. allies in that part of the world.

And President Biden asked about that meeting yesterday said -- was asked if he is concerned about. He said, if I'm not, you should be, Rahel?

SOLOMON: All right. Steve Contorno, Camile DeChalus, thank you both.

[12:05:03]

Turning now to the war in Gaza where the clock is ticking. U.S. officials were hoping to strike a deal for a temporary ceasefire, and the release of hostages before the beginning of Ramadan tomorrow evening.

But President Biden is warning that as of now, there is no agreement in sight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Will there be a ceasefire by Ramadan?

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's looking tough.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you concerned about violence in East Jerusalem without one?

BIDEN: I sure am.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: Biden's comments come as the U.S. just conducted another humanitarian airdrop into Gaza, but the humanitarian crisis deepening even further.

Also, just a short time ago, the 0 issued a warning that four out of five households in Gaza no longer have safe drinking water. Let's get to CNN's Clarissa Ward, she is live for us in Jerusalem. Clarissa, give us a sense of what's the latest there.

CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, any hopes that there had been that this ceasefire might be announced with the advent of Ramadan, which we expect to begin on Monday or Tuesday are slowly now giving way to the sort of grim reality, Rahel, that the intractability of the needs and demands of all the different sides have resulted in a scenario where that ceasefire is now highly unlikely.

The humanitarian situation on the ground inside Gaza continues to spiral to a point where the international community is really now just grappling with how on earth to try to deal with this. Air drops, which, you know, have been one way of getting aid in, but we've seen how difficult and frankly dangerous they are.

Yesterday, five civilians were killed when the parachute for one of those airdrops did not inflate correctly, and five people on the ground were killed. So, it's a dire situation.

And what's interesting on the ground in Israel, is that people are divided about the best way to respond to the situation in Gaza with regards to the humanitarian catastrophe with regards to the hunger crisis, which is growing worse by the day.

And we actually spent the day with a group of protesters who for six weeks now have been doing everything in their power to stop aid from getting into Gaza. Take a look at what we found.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WARD (voice over): They march with determination to the Kerem Shalom border as they have for six weeks. Their mission, to block international aid from crossing into Gaza.

The border police are waiting for them. There is a danger of sniper fire and projectiles, the officer warns. I ask you to leave this place.

But the protesters are undeterred, made up mostly of hostage family members, former reservists, and settlers. They ignore the order and change course to move closer to the crossing.

WARD: So, you can see the trucks with aid over there. The police had been trying to stop the protesters, but then they've just cut through this field, and they're pushing ahead.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How can anyone check these trucks and see what's inside were bags of rice that are meant to go to their children are filled with bullets.

WARD: Under international law, it's Israel's obligation to make sure that the ordinary citizens of Gaza don't starve to death. And right now, they are starving to death.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hamas is making it very difficult, because Hamas is not allowing this to provide --

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All the hostages are starving as well.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They are not holding it. They are not receiving it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is not our --

WARD: But they --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We'll do it. I'm telling you here and now. If we knew it's getting to children of Gaza, we would do it. This does not arrive at their doorstep. This arrives into the tunnels of Hamas that are fighting us and holding our hostages. No one would --

WARD: There is no evidence to support the idea that all of this aid is going to Hamas.

KATYA, PROTESTER: Not to the rest of the population. This is intelligence. Only for terror. That's why they are getting -- they should get only the minimum calories required to survive.

(CROSSTALK)

WARD: They are starving to death.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They are not starving --

(CROSSTALK)

WARD: They are starving to death.

KATYA: They -- you know what? If they are starving to death, give us back -- give the hostages back. No single loaf of bread should go there until our hostages are coming back.

WARD: To many people in the world, listening to what you're saying and what you're protesting for, it sounds like, A, a contravention of international law; and B, incredibly callous in the face of an epic humanitarian catastrophe.

In the face of children starving to death. People can't understand why anyone in their right mind would advocate for stopping aid.

[12:10:01]

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hamas has no fair play. Hamas has no rules. Hamas is holding civilians.

KATYA: You know, even if there is a humanitarian crisis there, and there is not. Even if there is, it's my right and my duty to prioritize the life of Kfir Bibas, a 1-year-old baby that deserve over any Gazan baby. WARD (voice-over): And with that, the interview is over as the protesters press on. Previously, they've managed to block aid trucks from crossing. But on this day, the police had been given their orders, and no one is getting through, prompting anger from the crowd.

You are confused. Go deal with the war, this woman shouts. We came to help you.

Unable to cross here, the protesters try their luck in another area, but the authorities are just as quick to stop them.

WARD: So, the police are now really starting to lose their patience. They've been trying to push these protesters away for hours now, and still, they are not leaving.

WARD (voice over): The crowd on this day is small, but their sentiment is shared by the majority of people in the country. A recent poll by the Israel Democracy Institute found that 68 percent of Jewish Israelis oppose the transfer of humanitarian aid into Gaza.

On the other side of the border, the situation could not be more dire. 7-year-old Fadi Alsant (PH) is suffering from severe dehydration and malnutrition. Doctors at the Kamal Adwan Hospital say they don't have the resources to properly treat him.

Fadi's mother says she's already lost two children. She doesn't want to lose him. According to Gaza's health authorities, at least 17 children have died of dehydration and malnutrition already.

And with the U.N. warning that famine is just a step away, there is hardly room for debate. More aid needs to get to more people as quickly as possible.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WARD (on camera): And I should add, Rahel, that since our piece was first published, Gaza's health authorities have updated the death toll. They say that there are now 23 children who have died inside Gaza as a result of acute malnutrition and dehydration.

And the fear is that this is going to continue to get worse, unless something is done to get more aid in more quickly. We have heard from the Biden administration. They are planning this ambitious project to bring in aid by sea to build this pier. That could take 30 to 60 days. And humanitarian aid workers are saying really, that is too long. That is a distraction from the real issue, which is another crossing needs to be opened up in the north, which is the hardest hit, the most isolated, the most desperate situation.

And so far, though, there hasn't been any consensus reached with the Israeli government about opening up some kind of a corridor from the north of Gaza too, Rahel.

SOLOMON: Clarissa Ward, just a really powerful, at times difficult to watch peace, but important reporting nonetheless.

Clarissa Ward, live for us in Jerusalem. Clarissa, thank you.

All right. Let's bring in Colonel Cedric Leighton. He is a CNN military analyst and retired U.S. Air Force.

Colonel, so good to see you. Let me ask, how difficult -- we heard Clarissa they are talking about this new initiative from the Biden administration to build this pier, essentially for humanitarian aid. How difficult logistically is something like that to build and how long do you think it might take?

COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Yes. Well, it's great to be with you. This is, you know, as Clarissa pointed out, 30 to 60 days is certainly a possible timeframe. I think they can perhaps do some parts of this a lot quicker than that. I know, there are some assets that are already pre-positioned in Europe.

They are using the port of Larnaca in Cyprus, just to the north of Gaza, that you -- as a staging area that would allow for not only material to be staged that will help create that that pier, that the U.S. is trying to build in Gaza. But it's also one of those situations where the logistics have to be perfect.

And the U.S. Navy does have capabilities that can be used rapidly. There C.V.s (PH) are known for their expertise in constructing things out of almost nothing. I -- and piers are one aspect of what they have expertise in.

So, what they're going to be doing requires a movement of a lot of pieces from not only the continental United States, but things that are pre-positioned in Europe that can be moved forward into the eastern Mediterranean. So, a lot of what they are going to do is in place right now in certain staging areas, but it's definitely not in Gaza.

[12:15:01]

So, I would suspect that somewhere in the two to three-week range, it would be in the area where we begin to see things show up, but that, of course, is a long time for people who are starving to deal with.

SOLOMON: Yes. Colonel, what do you make, and what does it say about the relationship between the Biden administration and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the U.S. is essentially circumventing Israel to get aid into Gaza. We also had that hot mic moment at the State of the Union, where the president was caught saying that he essentially wants to have a come-to-Jesus meeting with Netanyahu.

LEIGHTON: Yes, that was a very interesting comment from President Biden. And I think it was a deliberate comment to make sure that Netanyahu and the rest of his government understood that President Biden is losing patience with the Israelis.

Basically, I think what has happened is, you know, not only is there domestic political pressure on President Biden to do something about the situation in Gaza, but there is international pressure in. To the more pictures we see of starving children in Gaza, the more pressure will be exerted on the Biden administration and other countries to do something to alleviate the situation, the food shortages in Gaza.

So, the Biden administration is responding to this. They find the Israelis to be, frankly, intransigent in this particular regard. And they are trying to work their way through this, where they keep Israel as an ally, but they also do things that will help to protect the local population in Gaza. And that, of course, is a very difficult balancing act right now.

SOLOMON: Yes. We know the population and Gaza, a million and a half in Rafah. And there, the period before Ramadan was seen as especially critical just in terms of being able to broker some sort of deal.

Colonel, do you expect Israel will begin a large-scale military operation into Rafah with Ramadan scheduled to begin momentarily, within days?

LEIGHTON: I certainly hope not. But it wouldn't surprise me if they did. I think it would be a mistake to do this on a number of levels. But most importantly, it would be a mistake to do it, because there are so many people that are concentrated there. And the risk of civilian casualties is extraordinarily high.

And because of that, I think it's -- it would be much wiser if they were able to achieve some kind of an agreement where the Israeli hostages that are being held by Hamas and other groups in Gaza, are released.

And in exchange for a temporary ceasefire, which is what the Biden administration has talked about now, and that is something that I think would be very necessary for humanitarian aid to get in there.

But you know, as Clarissa pointed out in her report, it really becomes necessary to not only have this new sea corridor open up with this appear that is supposed to be developed on Gaza's coastline.

But it's also important to open up a land crossing, another land crossing, that gets aid in there, because right now, time is of the essence and I -- the Israeli military operations that could happen in the period before Ramadan, that those would be, I think, really counterproductive on many, many different levels.

SOLOMON: You know, CIA director, William Burns has been pretty, pretty instrumental on all of the talks thus far. He is meeting with his counterpart and Mossad which is Israel spy agency.

Colonel, what does Burns bring to the table in those talks that you think maybe others cannot?

LEIGHTON: He's got a very interesting dual role. And, you know, many times when the diplomatic aspects of the intelligence world aren't really publicized that much. Yes, most people don't realize how important a diplomatic role someone like the director of the CIA can play.

I -- but Director Burns has a very unique capability and that he is actually a professional diplomat, he was a former ambassador to Russia and among other places, he knows diplomacy, he knows the intelligence world, and he is a very, very good negotiator. And he was instrumental in the first hostage releases that that were brokered between Israel, Hamas, Qatar, and Egypt, and the United States. And those efforts did pay off for the people that were released.

However, of course, there is needed to not only get the remaining hostages out, but there is also a need to alleviate this humanitarian crisis. And Ambassador Director Burns is a person who has a unique skill set that can be used to great effect. And the other thing is, he's trusted by all the parties involved in his meeting with the Mossad director, is a key element in this. And I think that's the one way we have to move the needle forward in terms of not only preventing a military operation by the Israelis, at least on a temporary basis, but all also getting some type of ceasefire in place at this juncture.

[12:20:03]

Whether or not he'll be successful, of course, is another question but there's almost no one else who's as qualified as he is to do this.

SOLOMON: Yes. OK. Well, we'll leave it here. Colonel Cedric Leighton. Thanks so much. Good to see you.

Good to see you too. Rahel.

SOLOMON: All right. Well, still to come, hundreds of National Guard troops deployed to the New York City subway system to fight crime. This is all part of a five-point safety plan put in place by the state's governor. Why some are criticizing the plan?

Plus, a helicopter crash near the southern border kills two soldiers and one Border Patrol agent. We're going to have the details.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:25:16]

SOLOMON: Welcome back. The U.S. military's investigating a deadly helicopter crash near the southern border. Official say that two National Guard soldiers and a Border Patrol agent were killed Friday afternoon when their helicopter crashed in an open field and other soldiers in critical condition.

The team was following migrants here at Rio Grande City, Texas at the time. The cause of the crash is unclear. The names of the deceased are being withheld until their families are notified.

Well, New York Governor Kathy Hochul is facing criticism from the left and the right for deploying the National Guard to New York City subways.

Now, the plan calls for hundreds of troops to work alongside police amid the rise in subway crimes. Commuters will also face bag checks.

Let's bring in CNN's Polo Sandoval. So, Polo, the new measures are apparently a part of a five-point safety plan. Break down the plan for us.

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A couple of the other items on that five-point safety plan, Rahel, according to New York Governor Kathy Hochul, include the installation of cameras to protect some of those conductors that are operating the subway trains.

Also, it would permit a program that would effectively ban some commuters who assault or attack fellow passengers and the list goes on.

But the one that is perhaps the most notable and perhaps the most visible will be the one that you just mentioned will be the increase, the addition of 1,000 more personnel, including not just National Guard members, but also state troopers.

You see a couple of those states here at this particular transit stop here. This is certainly going to be one of the steps that the governor is taking.

Now, keeping in mind, that last February, New York Mayor Eric Adams did actually implement a program that increased NYPD officers that led to a roughly 50 percent decrease in transit crime.

So, there is a decrease, but there have been more notable or at least more publicized also violent incidents. And because of that, one of the big challenges for New York Governor Kathy Hochul, and, of course, local officials is actually combating the perception that the situation may be not so safe on New York City subway systems.

Here a couple of comments from some of those people who use that system every day. How they are reacting to these additional measures.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

YAEL FUCHS, RESIDENT, NEW YORK CITY: I think it's can be sometimes hard to like process the statistics, when you hear about really scary high-profile incidents, so, some of it is certainly an emotional reaction.

Just like the comfort that I get from the presence of the National Guard's people, is probably somewhat emotional.

But it helps me go about my life. So, I appreciate it.

DAN RUSSO, RESIDENT, NEW YORK CITY: I've never had a problem on the subway system or the Long Island Railroad, I think everybody that works in this system does a great job. This is New York City. Stuff has been happening for as long as I can remember.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: And, of course, we have seen criticism of this plan, including that there is no actual evidence indicating that increasing some of these bag checks would prevent any sort of overnight altercation between passengers or the assaults of a -- of a worker with MTA. But nonetheless, Rahel, as we send things back to you, the governor maintaining that this is at least a step in the right direction. Visibility is key to assure some of those passengers using the nation's largest transit system.

SOLOMON: Yes, interesting to hear this sort of different reactions from some of the passengers there.

Polo Sandoval live for us in New York. Polo, thank you.

All right. Well, coming up, testimony began in the trial against the father of the Oxford school shooter. He is facing four counts of involuntary manslaughter, and is now facing new allegations. We're going to have the latest.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:33:08]

SOLOMON: Welcome back on turning to the involuntary manslaughter trial of James Crumbley, the father of the Oxford Michigan school shooter. Authorities say that Crumbley's jailhouse phone privileges are now restricted after he was allegedly caught making threatening calls in custody. Now, officials have not revealed the nature of the threats or who's on the receiving. And, but his communications are now limited to his defense team and clergy. Meantime, here's CNN Jean Casarez with the latest on the trial.

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: One of the prosecution's witnesses on Friday was Detective Joe Brian. He heads up the special investigation unit. And he testified that once Ethan was in custody, he spoke to him and he asked him who his parents were, who his father was, he said James. And the detective called James and told him to get down to the substation because that's where Ethan was. So he and Jennifer went down there. I think you can see from this video, once they got there, they were ushered into this interview room.

There are two detectives, including Detective Brian in there. And they started talking to the parents and James spoke a lot. James said that they had gotten in an argument the night before with their son, Ethan, because of a geometry score, and that he had taken to Ethan to school. That morning, the morning of the mass shooting and he really thought everything was calmed down and he told his son just do the best you can in school.

He also was asked about does he have any issues and he said, well, he lost his best friend recently. He moved out of state. His dog died. My mother, his grandmother died in April. And then it went to, well, are there any disciplinary issues involving him. And he said he's never gotten in trouble with school. But then on the cross examination, the defense, they honed in on a pivotal issue in this case, the safekeeping of that gun.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[12:35:04]

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: At six minutes and 45 seconds, James told you that he had a six hour handgun?

SGT. JOE BRIAN, DETECTIVE, OAKLAND COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And it was at six minutes and 50 seconds, he said that it was hidden in an arm bar in a case?

BRIAN: Correct.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: At six minutes and 58 seconds. And these are approximate timestamps. I'm not holding you to them to tackle.

BRIAN: I really appreciate it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Six minutes and 58 seconds that the bullets were hidden in a different spot under jeans, he says?

BRIAN: Yes, ma'am.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CASAREZ: When the trial ended on Friday, the judge turned to the jury and said, we are really making time on this trial, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of next week, we will work and then she told the jury, and after that you could be getting the case. So obviously this case is going at record speed. And we'll see what next week holds.

SOLOMON: All right, our thanks to Jean. And joining me now to discuss is Defense Attorney Misty Marris. Missy, good to see you. First, what do you make of the alleged threats that James Crumbley is accused of making from jail?

MISTY MARRIS, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Yes, it's very curious who these threats were actually directed to. We know that when somebody is incarcerated, that they -- their calls are monitored. The only calls that are not monitored are those that would be privileged between an attorney and a client, or between a clergyman and Mr. Crumbley. So where these threats were directed, we don't know. But it was severe enough to rescind his privileges, and to limit his communications. So that leads me to believe that they were significant. And that's why the jail took that that extreme measure.

SOLOMON: Let me ask the jury heard from a detective who interviewed James Crumbley after his son's attack. And he said that Ethan seemed fine the morning of the shooting. And I'm curious if not being aware, being unaware of the danger Ethan pose cannot be part of a defense and effective part of the defense?

MARRIS: So that's the central issue of the defense. There's two issues that the defense will focus on. One is the foreseeability aspect. That's what the statute requires to prove beyond a reasonable doubt. So it's looking at the timeframe before Ethan committed this horrible and terrible act. And looking at what the parents and in this case, James Crumbley, knew or should have known, based on Ethan's conduct.

So he said Ethan seemed fine, but I think there's something else in there that really triggered my mind when I was listening to the testimony. It's that James drove Ethan to school that morning, and we know Ethan had that gun with him. So I think that's something the jury is going to pay attention to. But there's a reason that this testimony is coming out. It does speak to foreseeability. And that's the entire argument whether or not they knew Ethan had the propensity to commit such a violent act.

SOLOMON: Some of those themes, of course, were present when Ethan's mom went to trial as well. Let me turn to Uvalde, Texas. The families of the victims are furious after an independent investigator found that local police committed no wrongdoing for the 2022 school shooting, despite officers waiting, of course, more than an hour to confront the shooter. Misty, what are your thoughts on the findings?

MARRIS: The findings, I understand what the parents were absolutely livid, the findings what a step further and said that it was actually the parents arriving and being upset and panicking at the site that led to law enforcement being unable to do their job. Can you imagine being the parents of one of these victims and sitting there and hearing that?

But let's talk about what the report is. The report is a independent investigative report that was brought in by the city, the city executives and city officials for the purposes of litigation. So this is an independent investigator who comes in and does an analysis and create this report that will at some point, be used at trial. There's multiple civil litigations going on, there's multiple, the criminal inquiry is still open. There's no charges yet, but it's still open.

So all of that being said that -- what this report really means is that it could be evidence at a trial, it's not dispositive. And by the way, it's at odds with a 600-page DOJ report, which identified significant problems, including what was called cascading failures by the police department. So what happens in the end is these are two competing pieces of evidence in trial.

It's more significant, though, for the purposes of terminations of officers that were involved that day. There's 25 officers, none of them were terminated. This report will likely be used to keep them employed. A lot of issues going on to report to me, disturbing, but not as meaningful in a courtroom.

SOLOMON: Misty Marris, great to have your insight. Thank you.

MARRIS: Thank you.

[12:39:49]

SOLOMON: All right. Well, just ahead, gang violence in Haiti is spiraling out of control. Armed men attacking police stations near the National Palace. How authorities are trying to get control back, coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SOLOMON: Welcome back. Chaos and gang violence are spiraling out of control in Haiti as armed groups threatened capital city. Two police stations near the National Palace were attacked Friday night, as gang leaders warned of quote, civil war if the Prime Minister does not leave office. Haiti has declared a state of emergency until April 3rd, while tens of thousands of Haitians have fled their homes over the past few days.

[12:45:02]

Let's get to CNN's Patrick Oppmann who joins us now with more. Patrick, just first give us a sense of what you're learning about this attack last night.

PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, if it's not clear if it was just an attack on police stations, which we've seen so much a police station sacked and burned, or if these gang members actually intended to enter the National Palace, which of course is like a Hades White House. So be incredibly significant. And there's a lot of fear, both within Haiti and certainly at the State Department that the gangs could end up taking and occupying a symbolic place like the National Palace, or the airport in Port-au-Prince, which has also been under siege, and that would really epitomize Hades total collapse at that point, if you had a symbolic place like that taken. So police apparently we're able to keep the gang members at bay, at least for the moment.

SOLOMON: Patrick, these gang members are calling on the Prime Minister Henry to step down. Is it clear where he is? At one point he was in Puerto Rico. Is it clear where he is right now?

OPPMANN: You know, he has really kept a very low profile. He has not issued any messages. He's not trying to address his people as far as we know. We believe he's in Puerto Rico. He, of course, tried to return to Haiti via the Dominican Republic was unable to. And at this point, it's not clear if he would even be able to get back on the ground in Haiti. It's just maybe too dangerous.

The airport, of course, remains closed. There's a lot of pressure on him to make way to either resign or announce some sort of transitional government. So far at least, he has resisted those attempts to ease his political situation because, of course, these gangs a lot of times represent political parties. So despite the pressure from Washington from the gangs, on Prime Minister Ariel Henry to come up with some sort of concession that ends this crisis. No word from him as of yet.

SOLOMON: Patrick Oppmann live for us there in Havana, Patrick, thank you.

All right, up next for us, families of Americans wrongfully detained overseas are demanding to speak with the President. And the U.S. remembered those trapped in prisons worldwide. We'll be right back.

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[12:51:59]

SOLOMON: Welcome back. And for the fourth time this week, a United flight has an issue. This one took place Friday afternoon when a flight from San Francisco to Mexico City had to divert to Los Angeles because of an issue with the hydraulic system. The flight landed safely and passengers continued on their trip on a different plane.

Now on Monday, flames were seen from the United plane engine. On Tuesday, United Flight lost a tire during takeoff. And then yesterday a flight exited the taxiway and into a grassy area. We'll continue to follow this for you.

Also today for the first time ever, Americans who were held in detention abroad or who have yet to come home are being honored as part of hostage and wrongful detainee day. The Solemn Day will be annually recognized on March 9th. It coincides with the abduction of former FBI agent Robert Levinson in Iran 17 years ago. The inaugural ceremony was held yesterday at the State Department. That's where officials vowed to bring detainees home.

Let's go to CNN's Jennifer Hansler who joins us live from Washington. So Jennifer, give us a sense of how the ceremony came about.

JENNIFER HANSLER, CNN STATE DEPARTMENT REPORTER: Well, Rahel, the ceremony and really the day came about because of the advocacy of the families and groups like the Foley Foundation, who have for years pushed on the importance of recognizing this cause. Now the actual day was created in bipartisan legislation last year that was signed into law by the President at the end of the year.

And yesterday's flag raising ceremony was to commemorate the first celebration of this day. Now as Deputy Secretary Kurt Campbell said they would raise the hostage and wrongful detainee flag every year for the day as well as any time they brought someone home or someone regrettably died abroad.

And now Rahel the word that we heard used over and over again yesterday, was solemn. Campbell said, quote, it is a solemn recognition of those who have returned home, those who regrettably never will, and those who are still being held captive abroad.

Now in the crowd yesterday, we had senior U.S. officials, there were Americans who have returned home, who had been wrongfully detained abroad in places like Venezuela and Iran, and a number of families of those who are still waiting for their loved ones to come home. A number of those families have been calling on President Biden to meet with them for months and months now, and they have yet to hear a reply from the White House, from the President on those requests.

So a number of them from the State Department, then went to Lafayette Park in front of the White House to reiterate those demands. They are feeling very frustrated that they feel the President is not paying attention to their loved ones cases. This is how Harrison Li whose father Kai Li is detained in China. This is how he put it.

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HARRISON LI, SON OF KAI LI, DETAINED IN CHINA SINCE 2016: We are sick and tired. Sick and tired of standing in front of the White House, having to travel across the country to D.C. to the doorstep of President Biden begging with him to just meet with us even if only for five minutes

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[12:55:05]

HANSLER: So Rahel you hear a lot of desperation and a lot of impatience in Harrison's voice there. And this is reflected in the requests of a number of families who just want to sit down with the President. Now U.S. officials say that sitting down with the President having him hear the story does not necessarily lead to the release of a family and they are still working every day to get their loved ones home. Rahel?

SOLOMON: Yes. OK. Jennifer Hansler live for us there, Jennifer, thank you.

Well, stop me if you've heard this one before, Biden and Trump both campaigning in Georgia, the only two major party candidates left in the race and each other are set on the beach state. We'll be right back.

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