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CNN Live Saturday

Officials Shut Down Portion Of Ohio I-270 To Perform Forensic Tests

Aired December 06, 2003 - 18:13   ET

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

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


CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: In Columbus, Ohio, a 20-mile section of Interstate 270 has been closed. Police say it will only last an hour or two so they can investigate a string of highway shootings. Are Martin Savidge is live in Columbus with the latest on that investigation - Marty.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good evening to you Carol. As you say, they are right in the middle of that shutdown of I-270. it is actually about a 4-mile stretch that they have closed. And that is the area specifically where many of the shootings have occurred. It is not easy closing that highway. It is normally being traveled by about 70 to 80,000 vehicles a day. So the situation right now is that is an extraordinary event.

However, the reason they are doing that is to allow federal agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms to use some specific technology, in this case lasers to try to measure exactly where the gunshots may be coming from. They could backtrack that and perhaps find some evidence or at least try to get a better idea as to who may be carrying them out. It shows you the length that law enforcement is willing to go to try to end the shooting spree.

However, some say it also shows you how they really haven't got much to go on if they are taking this kind of extraordinary leap to do this, to close the highway down. Earlier in the day, they were canvassing out in a suburb in the same area, going literally door to door asking questions of people who live in the area. What is interesting about this is that this subdivision is very near that elementary school which on November 11 in the middle of the night received a single fun shot through a window. The bullet was retrieved from that school and ballistic tests found that it matched, fired from the same gun that was used to kill at 62-year-old woman who was traveling on I-270 on November 25th. Authorities believe that that community may have some sort of special connection to the shooters. Listen to what authorities had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DET. STEVE MARTIN, FRANKLIN COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPT: Investigators are interesting in that particular neighborhood because the school is off I-270 are where most of the latest (ph) shootings occurred.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAVIDGE: See, the school is removed from where most of the other shooting have happened. So that is why investigators at least find that very, very interesting. So they were out asking questions today. So you've got the extraordinary event of shutting down the highway and then you have them going door to door in force in a community. So they are out there beating the bushes, trying to find information. But they also gave a sense of frustration out their news conference earlier in the day, implying that they truly believe somebody out there either has seen something or knows something. And they are frustrated that that person so far has not come forward. - Carol.

LIN: Marty, what is it that they do know in this investigation? Do they know if it is one shooter? Two shooters? They type of weapon being used?

SAVIDGE: Well, the truth is they may know or have an idea about both of those questions, meaning whether it is one shooter, whether it is two shooters. They definitely know what type of weapon is being used. They have not released that information to the news media or to the public, because they say that that kind of information if it was out there would harm their investigative attempts. What they are trying to do also is set up a dialogue, a communication with whomever may be carrying out these attacks, urging them to call on the telephone. They even established a special post office box for this person to write to if they wanted. Is it possible police are withholding or investigators are withhoholding that information because they may use it to confirm that they truly are talking with the person responsible - Carol.

LIN: All right, thank you very much. Martin Savidge on the case there in Ohio on these shootings.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com




Forensic Tests>


Aired December 6, 2003 - 18:13   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: In Columbus, Ohio, a 20-mile section of Interstate 270 has been closed. Police say it will only last an hour or two so they can investigate a string of highway shootings. Are Martin Savidge is live in Columbus with the latest on that investigation - Marty.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good evening to you Carol. As you say, they are right in the middle of that shutdown of I-270. it is actually about a 4-mile stretch that they have closed. And that is the area specifically where many of the shootings have occurred. It is not easy closing that highway. It is normally being traveled by about 70 to 80,000 vehicles a day. So the situation right now is that is an extraordinary event.

However, the reason they are doing that is to allow federal agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms to use some specific technology, in this case lasers to try to measure exactly where the gunshots may be coming from. They could backtrack that and perhaps find some evidence or at least try to get a better idea as to who may be carrying them out. It shows you the length that law enforcement is willing to go to try to end the shooting spree.

However, some say it also shows you how they really haven't got much to go on if they are taking this kind of extraordinary leap to do this, to close the highway down. Earlier in the day, they were canvassing out in a suburb in the same area, going literally door to door asking questions of people who live in the area. What is interesting about this is that this subdivision is very near that elementary school which on November 11 in the middle of the night received a single fun shot through a window. The bullet was retrieved from that school and ballistic tests found that it matched, fired from the same gun that was used to kill at 62-year-old woman who was traveling on I-270 on November 25th. Authorities believe that that community may have some sort of special connection to the shooters. Listen to what authorities had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DET. STEVE MARTIN, FRANKLIN COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPT: Investigators are interesting in that particular neighborhood because the school is off I-270 are where most of the latest (ph) shootings occurred.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAVIDGE: See, the school is removed from where most of the other shooting have happened. So that is why investigators at least find that very, very interesting. So they were out asking questions today. So you've got the extraordinary event of shutting down the highway and then you have them going door to door in force in a community. So they are out there beating the bushes, trying to find information. But they also gave a sense of frustration out their news conference earlier in the day, implying that they truly believe somebody out there either has seen something or knows something. And they are frustrated that that person so far has not come forward. - Carol.

LIN: Marty, what is it that they do know in this investigation? Do they know if it is one shooter? Two shooters? They type of weapon being used?

SAVIDGE: Well, the truth is they may know or have an idea about both of those questions, meaning whether it is one shooter, whether it is two shooters. They definitely know what type of weapon is being used. They have not released that information to the news media or to the public, because they say that that kind of information if it was out there would harm their investigative attempts. What they are trying to do also is set up a dialogue, a communication with whomever may be carrying out these attacks, urging them to call on the telephone. They even established a special post office box for this person to write to if they wanted. Is it possible police are withholding or investigators are withhoholding that information because they may use it to confirm that they truly are talking with the person responsible - Carol.

LIN: All right, thank you very much. Martin Savidge on the case there in Ohio on these shootings.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com




Forensic Tests>