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CNN Live Saturday
Interview Marc Klaas; South Carolina Teens Rescued After Being Lost At Sea; Lynndie England To Plead Guilty To Prisoner Abuse
Aired May 01, 2005 - 18:00 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: From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Lin. And here's what's happening right now in the news. The U.S. Navy says 41 people are missing and 5 are dead after a boat from another country sank off the coast of Somalia. Navy video released today shows German and American patrol boats rescuing 89 people Friday. It is not known what country the boat came from.
And one of the world's busiest airports is recovering from a harrowing morning. A stolen, abandoned truck prompted a terminal to be shut down at Atlanta Hartsfield/Jackson International Airport. A bomb search found nothing. And then a fire in a van destroyed six vehicles and damaged five others in a terminal parking garage.
And Israel and Turkey will set up a hotline for instant communications. Israel's prime minister made the announcement today during a visit by the Turkish prime minister. The hotline will help the two countries coordinate anti-terror efforts.
Right now we begin with a remarkable survivor story out of South Carolina. Two teenagers looking for a high seas adventure got a lot more than they bargained for. The two boys survived almost a weak at sea, clinging to their boat, and dodging sharks before they were rescued yesterday sunburned, and dehydrated but otherwise OK.
Reporter Mike Hughes from CNN affiliate WCSC talked to the boys from their hospital beds. Mike, what did they tell you?
MIKE HUGHES, WCSC CORRESPONDENT: Well, they tell me they're in good spirits. The boys right now have been at the Medical University of South Carolina here in doctors' care for about 15 hours now. Friends and family from all over the country have come in to comfort and give them support.
Of course this started last week by a simple fishing trip that turned into an experience of a lifetime. Here's what they had to say about that experience in their own words.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TROY DRISCOLL, BOAT LOST AT SEA: I was OK for the first night, and the second night. But after the second night I thought that we were not going to make it, because I thought Coast Guard was going to get us real soon. But no one was there.
JOSH LONG, RESCUED SAILOR: Basically, my thought that I might never see my family again. And I just prayed every day that God would send me home or take me to heaven.
HUGHES (voice-over): 17-year-old Josh Long and his best friend and seamate 15-year-old Troy Driscoll each say it didn't take very much time to realize their Sunday afternoon fishing trip would turn into a fear full adventure.
LONG: As soon as we got the rip tide we knew that we were in trouble.
DRISCOLL: We could see nothing but water. So it was just a mind game. And it really got to me.
HUGHES: The boys found themselves lost at sea floating seemingly helplessly for six days. Surviving on only small sea creatures they found in the salty ocean waters. Both boys credit God and each other for the strength to endure.
DRISCOLL: It was a miracle. And Josh -- if it wasn't for him and our teamwork together -- we never argued, we just encouraged eachother (INAUDIBLE) making it.
LONG: I think it was a test from God -- this whole experience was. And that was to test my faith and my best friend's faith and the faith of my family. And it just showed how everybody -- we came together and pulled through it.
HUGHES: And it was those same family and friends who welcomed the boys back with balloons, flowers and posters celebrating their survival. The teens say if there's a lesson to be learned, it's...
DRISCOLL: Be thankful what you have before reality actually hits you in your face. Just make sure you have your life in a good grip and hand hold and know that they're there for you and love them and give them more respect back.
HUGHES: And as far as getting back in the water sometime soon.
LONG: I lost every bit of gear, but as soon as I get my gear back I'm going to be out on the water. But I'm going to make sure I have two motors this time on the boat.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HUGHES: As is very apparent, both teens are in relatively good spirits after their ordeal and rescue. Remarkably, doctors say it should only take a few weeks for the boys to make a complete recovery.
Both Troy and Josh are scheduled to leave the hospital here and go home finally sometime tomorrow -- Carol.
LIN: Mike, have you heard from their parents?
HUGHES: We did speak with the parents. They have obviously overwhelmed and overjoyed by the whole thing. This experience has been going on for about a week. And about midweek here in Charleston, a lot of folks had given up on the boys. But of course, when they found out yesterday around 4:30 that they had been found alive and safe, they were beyond words.
LIN: I can imagine. And I'm sure they're pretty shocked to know that their boys may want to get back out on the water again after this adventure. We'll see about that.
All right. Thanks very much. Mike Hughes reporting in from our affiliate WCSC.
In the meantime, in international news, North Korea fired a shot heard around the world today. Apparently a test of a short-range missile that fell into the Sea of Japan. But coupled with the fact that North Korea has boldly declared it is pursuing a nuclear program, well that's enough to draw the White House's reaction on the eve of a critical conference at the United Nations.
CNN's Elaine Quijano is at the White House with more details. Elaine, what is this short range missile test really mean?
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's a good question, Carol.
The U.S. officials continue to say, first of all, that they are looking at this, they are consulting with governments that are in the region. And really that is the question, whether or not this was simply a political ploy to get attention, or in fact, could Pyongyang be headed for a nuclear test?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
QUIJANO (voice-over): Confirmation of Japanese news reports came from White House chief of staff Andrew Card.
ANDREW CARD, WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: It appears that there was a test of a short-range missile by the North Koreans. And it landed in the Sea of Japan. We're not surprised by this. The North Koreans have tested their missiles before.
QUIJANO: It may not be a surprise, but coupled with concerns over North Korea's nuclear ambitions, it does cause worry.
SEN. CHUCK HAGEL, (R) NEBRASKA: Every time they run a test that advances that technology, it's a concern.
SEN. CARL LEVIN, (D) MICHIGAN: It's an additional very discouraging evidence that this administration's policy towards North Korea is failing.
QUIJANO: Under President Bush's policy, the U.S. has not talked directly with the North Koreans about their nuclear program. Instead, the U.S. is counting on North Korea's neighbors, especially China, to pressure Pyongyang into taking part in six way talks.
CARD: We have to work together with our allies around the world, especially the Japanese, the South Koreans, the Russians and the Chinese, to demonstrate that North Korea's actions are inappropriate.
QUIJANO: But the talks have been stalled for nearly a year. And some say it's time to re-evaluate.
LEVIN: Of course we have to work on a common strategy with our allies. But that is no excuse not to talk directly with the North Koreans. It has led to real failure in these policies. The nuclear threat is increasing from North Korea as a result.
QUIJANO: News of the missile test comes just days after Vice Admiral Lowell Jacoby, the head of the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, said he believed the North Koreans have the capability to arm a missile with a nuclear device. But Pentagon officials quickly played down that statement.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUIJANO: And after Pyongyang called President Bush a Philistine last week, the president's chief of staff fired back, calling North Korean president Kim Jong-il -- saying that he is not a good person, not a good leader and accusing his government of bullying the world -- Carol.
LIN: All right, Elaine Quijano, thank you very much. We'll be following this story very closely.
Also overseas, insurgents in Iraq unleashed a third straight day of bloody attacks. A suicide bomb blew up at a funeral in Tal Afar, killing about 25 people and wounding some 50 others. The victims were burying a Kurdish official who was assassinated yesterday.
Three separate attacks in Baghdad have left at least 13 Iraqis dead. Five were Iraqi police officers killed in a gun battle with as many as 30 insurgents.
Now in another development, three people are in custody charged in connection with the apparent killing of aid worker Margaret Hassan. The suspects were detained in an overnight raid in Baghdad after authorities found an I.D. card, clothing and a handbag that apparently belonged to Hassan. The British citizen and director of C.A.R.E. was kidnapped in October. A video surfaced a month later of her apparent execution.
And a controversial chapter in the Abu Ghraib Prison scandal appears to be winding down. CNN national correspondent Susan Candiotti joins us now from Fort Hood, Texas. A plea deal for Lynndie England -- Susan.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Hi, Carol.
Tomorrow morning, new mother Lynndie England is scheduled to appear before a judge here at Fort Hood.
Now, having said all along she was not to blame for her alleged role in the Abu Ghraib Prison scandal, Lynndie England is now expected to plead guilty.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) CANDIOTTI (voice-over): It was the way Lynndie England celebrated her 21st birthday night that got her in so much trouble. Posing here with this naked Iraqi detainee, then mocking a full row of prisoners blamed for starting a prison riot, finally smiling thumbs up behind the now infamous naked human pyramid.
England was a clerk, not a guard at Abu Ghraib Prison. But she'd often spent her nights in the cell block with her boyfriend, Guard Charles Graner, defying orders against that. England said it was Graner who told her to pose for photos like these that led her own lawyer to call her the poster child of the prison scandal.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Specialist Graner, what do you think about the trial that you just got?
CANDIOTTI: Graner already has been sentenced to 10 years in a military prison. CNN has learned England has agreed to plead guilty at her court-martial starting Monday in hopes of a lighter sentence. The charges from abuse to conspiracy, could send England to prison for a decade or more. But under a deal outside the court, her lawyers are trying to limit that to as little as two years.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI: So here's how the penalty phase will work. Once a guilty plea is accepted, a jury will be seated on Tuesday to decide what the sentence will be. It could go as high as eleven years, but there are signs that both sides have agreed to as little as two years.
So if a jury comes back with anything higher than that, it will be ignored. Anything less than that, will work in England's favor -- Carol.
LIN: All right. The bar is set there. In the meantime, what's happened to her baby, Susan?
CANDIOTTI: Well, he's now about six months old. And of course, that is one reason why it is believed that Lynndie England agreed to plead guilty, in hopes of getting a light sentence.
Remember, it is widely believed, too, that the father of that baby is Charles Graner, her ex-boyfriend, who's now in prison. However, Graner is now, according to his lawyers, now said to be married to someone else, another participant in the Abu Ghraib Prison scandal, giving all of this the air of a soap opera.
LIN: All right. So somebody's got custody of the baby clearly, though?
CANDIOTTI: Oh, she does, yes. And when she goes to prison her mother will take care of the baby if, indeed, she goes to prison.
LIN: All right, Susan Candiotti, live at Fort Hood. Thank you.
In the meantime, the runaway bride is back in her home in Duluth, Georgia. Jennifer Wilbanks vanished last week. And then resurfaced yesterday in New Mexico on what was to have been her wedding day.
And we are learning new details about her strange journey today. CNN's Denise Belgrave joins me now from Duluth. Denise, what have you learned?
DENISE BELGRAVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol. Actually some new details have come out today about Jennifer Wilbanks' ordeal. A source that has been briefed on the investigation has told CNN that Jennifer actually bought the bus ticket several days before she left town.
They also told us that she had prearranged transportation in order to get to the bus station. And that source also told us that she cut her own hair on the day that she left town.
We also spoke with FBI spokesman Bill Elwell. And Elwell gave us some more detail about the time that she actually spent in Las Vegas. Let's hear what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL ELWELL, FBI SPOKESMAN: Well, according to her, she stayed in the terminal, because her funds were pretty much diminished by this time. And she had -- she had befriended a couple of individuals that she later described as being a Hispanic male and a female Caucasian. And began to talk to them. And mentioned -- they mentioned that they had been gambling in Las Vegas. And then she mentioned -- they mentioned they were heading off to Albuquerque. And at that point, based on the amount of funds she had, she decided, well, then I'll go to Albuquerque. And she traveled along with them on that last leg from Las Vegas to Albuquerque.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BELGRAVE: And when she got to Las Vegas, in fact, she got into a taxi and tried to get a hotel. And the taxi driver told her she was going to have a lot of trouble finding a hotel room, because there was a big convention in town.
So he took her just outside of town where there were some cheaper motels. And it was at that point, Elwell says, that she probably figured out that she was running out of funds and she decided to end this run and make that call home -- Carol.
LIN: All right. Thanks very much, Denise.
By the way, any word on criminal charges -- possible criminal charges?
BELGRAVE: Well, as we know, the D.A. is still thinking about those criminal charges. And he has said in the past that whether or not this was premeditated might factor in to that decision -- Carol.
LIN: All right. Thanks very much. Denise Belgrave live in Duluth. We'll be tracking this story through the night, as well. In the meantime, regaining trust lost by a child abuse scandal. What does the new pope have to do to help heal the rift in Boston's Catholic community? You're going to hear from sexual abuse survivors next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LIN: Pope Benedict XVI delivered his first Sunday address from the papal apartment windows to worshipers in St. Peter's Square. The crowd was filled with thousands of Catholics curious about the church's new leader.
American Catholics are particularly eager to see how the pope will approach the church's notorious sex abuse scandal. CNN's Jason Carroll reports from Boston.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Boston is a city where the Catholic church is in crisis, where parishioners are in pain -- priests, convicted of sexually abusing children, where a cardinal has resigned in disgrace, where donations to Catholic charities are dropping.
So how do those closest to the crisis feel about the new pope? We've brought a small group together to find out. They are victims. Ann Webb, abused by her priest when she was just 5. John King, abused at age 13. Clergymen, Father Paul Helfrich who met Cardinal Ratzinger while he was studying in Rome. And Father David Convertino (ph), Franciscan, activist, Anne Doyle and Jim Post.
(on camera): What do you think this pope should do that the last pope did not do?
ANNE DOYLE, BISHOPS ACCOUNTABILITY.ORG: If he holds -- starts here in the U.S., holds those bishops accountable for being accomplices to child rape -- let's not minimize this -- then that would be a very powerful signal to the whole world.
ANN WEBB, PRIEST ABUSE VICTIM: I'd also like to see that the bishops be held accountable and that seems to be completely off everyone's agenda.
REV. PAUL HELFRICH, CATHOLIC PRIEST: I think he will give the local bishops the chance to address it before he steps in.
CARROLL (voice-over): Some church officials believe the problem has already been addressed. In 2002, the U.S. church adopted a zero tolerance policy on sexual abuse by priests. Churches had to pay millions in court settlements. In some cases, parishes have been shut down under the financial strain.
(on camera): What do you say to those people who say, look, the church has already what acknowledged what happened here in the United States? JOHN KING, ABUSE VICTIM: They've acknowledged it. However the fact that the people that are still in charge are the ones that created the problem.
WEBB: To make some kind of a statement to the world that this was not appropriate. No one's ever that.
FATHER DAVID CONVERTINO, FRANCISCAN: I would be very surprised if the pope came out with a statement specifically about this issue in the United States in the near future, without first going through the cardinals and the bishops.
CARROLL (voice-over): Cardinal Ratzinger has made statements on this issue before he was elected pope. He blamed the media in part for blowing the story out of proportion. But as cardinal, he reopened an investigation involving a priest and oversaw tribunals of priests accused of abuse.
DOYLE: He ran this tribunal, and we didn't get any information.
CARROLL (on camera): Do you agree with that assessment?
HELFRICH: No. My understanding is that he -- his congregation has overseen these tribunals. And at least the latest information I have is those cases are now being processed.
WEBB: Transparency is the key.
CARROLL: What do you mean by that, though?
WEBB: We need -- even in the Archdiocese of Boston we do not know the names of the priests.
DOYLE: You need to open the secret archives in every diocese. Do you realize -- you think we know the truth of this crisis? We don't begin to know the truth of this crisis.
CONVERTINO: Somebody who was being interviewed on TV said when the pope wakes up in the morning the first thing he does not think about is the American church. He thinks about the whole, total picture.
CARROLL (voice-over): But many American Catholics think that Benedict XVI is wise enough to know how important they are in the global church, and how deeply this issue has hurt them.
HELFRICH: I think he's a man of conviction. And I think he is someone who would expect from clerics a high degree of moral rectitude.
JIM POST, ACTIVIST: We're Catholics, so we're a hope-filled people. And I have to believe that this pope, knowing what he does, will put this high on the agenda.
CARROLL: But victims like John King, and Ann Webb say, they have been disappointed too often to rely on hope. WEBB: My gut tells me it probably won't live up to my expectations. But my expectations are high. I hope my gut's wrong.
CARROLL: Jason Carroll, CNN, Boston.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LIN: Well, all day long, CNN has been reporting in-depth on the sexual exploitation of children. Coming up at the bottom of the hour, we are going to begin this hour's coverage with a profile of one case that has police facing a dilemma. Should the identity of child pornography victims be revealed to help capture their abusers? Why one Canadian department may change the way it conducts investigations.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LAURA BUSH, FIRST LADY: George's answer to any problem at the ranch is to cut it down with a chain saw. Which I think is why he and Cheney and Rumsfeld get along so well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIN: First lady Laura Bush was the hit of last night's White House Correspondents Association dinner in Washington. After a staged interruption of her husband's speech, she rolled out a comedy routine that brought the house down.
CNN political analyst Carlos Watson was among the dinner guests. And right now he's in our New York bureau with a full menu of other hot issues. But we've got to ask him about last night. I mean, who knew? Best-kept secret in Washington how funny the first lady is.
CARLOS WATSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: She did a great job. She was very funny. She talked about "Desperate Housewives." She made another joke that she and her mother-in-law, former first lady Barbara Bush, and Lynne Cheney all going down to a ladies club. And she just kept everyone rolling.
No one expected it. She did a fine job. A little bit reminiscent of something that Nancy Reagan did back in 1983 at a Gridiron dinner where she sang and danced a little bit and surprised people with the kind of how comfortable she was.
LIN: In fact, you just touched on it. The first lady painted the scenario that frankly it's hard to believe. You talked about going to a ladies club. This is the moment that she was talking about that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
L. BUSH: One night, after George went to bed, Lynne Cheney, Condi Rice, Karen Hughes and I went to Chippendales. I wouldn't even mention it, except Ruth Ginsburg and Sandra Day O'Connor saw us there.
I won't tell you what happened. But Lynne's Secret Service code name is now "Dollar Bill."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIN: All right. Well now we know that you know -- she missed her calling. She's got a future in her retirement maybe in a comedy act. But in more serious issues, Carlos, talk about people's retirement. I mean, obviously the president has been beating the drum on his Social Security plan. But you've actually been tipped off that there may be some ideas coming from overseas on how Americans can best afford to retire.
WATSON: Indeed. In fact, part of what's interesting, Carol, about the conversations that the president has kicked off -- it's the first big conversation about Social Security and changing the program in over 20 years. And so even some of his critics say that he deserves kudos for that. But it's likely to open up at least two additional areas of discussion.
One is what do we do about healthcare? Because as you know, many seniors, even those on Social Security, even if that is secure, they still end up spending almost all of their assets on late-term healthcare. And so there will be big conversations about Medicare and Medicaid.
And so, although you may not see resolution this year, expect that the conversation that's been kicked off will continue all the way, probably, through the next presidential election.
Another conversation would be what happens to those who don't come into life with big assets. Whether that's money from family, whether that's a home, et cetera? One idea that Tony Blair actually took from the U.S., and implemented over there in England is something called a baby bond. Where you start off life with something like 500 pounds, English pounds or in the U.S. there's a proposal from Jon Corzine and Rick Santorum, two senators, that people may start with $1,000.
And you'd be able to invest it over the years, and you may end up with $25,000 or $35,000 by the time you're 18 in order to spend on a college education or small business or other things. So that you build up your assets so that by the time you reach Social Security age, you actual actually have something else to bring to the table.
LIN: Like a retirement voucher. You know, they talk about school vouchers. This would be something for retirement that would be interesting.
WATSON: Very much -- again, I think there's credit to be had for this conversation starting. No matter what happens in terms of legislation, you're likely to hear us touch on some new ideas and some important areas including healthcare and early life assets.
LIN: All right.
Well, you know, it's hard for me to imagine Sandra Day O'Connor at Chippendales as the first lady was joking about. WATSON: Hey, who says politics isn't fun?
LIN: Yeah really! And that women in Washington can't have a good time.
All right. So she may be at Chippendale's, according to the first lady, and maybe she's surfing the Internet. You're actually expecting some surprises regarding some Internet rulings out of the U.S. Supreme Court that really could change the way all of us could surf the net.
WATSON: Very much so. You know, this past week the Supreme Court finished hearing arguments in various cases. And they've already offered up some rulings, will offer more rulings over the next four to six weeks.
And a lot of people think that the big political story around the Supreme Court this year will either be an opening on the court, which they expect in June or July, or will perhaps be a big ruling around either the "Ten Commandments Case" as its called, or property rights.
But the one maybe to watch over the long-term is a ruling on the Internet, and the use of so-called file sharing, how you share files from one site to another, or from one user from a site. And a lot of it has to do with kind of downloading things, some would say illegally, or for free.
But this ruling actually could have ramifications that may affect our ability to use the Internet for free, our ability to use it cheaply. And so watch this one. Watch it carefully. Not only the ruling, but maybe some follow-up legislation which may have a lot to say about how you use e-mail, whether or not you can go to Whitepages.com. Your ability to go to ESPN.com and download things and share them with your friends.
LIN: All right.
In the meantime, Carlos. Now that I've got you warmed up, give me the real dish on last night's correspondents' dinner. All right? Who were the celebrities out there that you saw? Who did you get to rub elbows with?
WATSON: We saw some good people. We saw Serena and Venus Williams. Elle MacPherson was there -- she's no Carol Lin, but she was there.
LIN: You're talking about the supermodel?
WATSON: Talking about the supermodel.
Tom Brady was there. A couple folks from the "West Wing" from the "Sopranos" were there, as well. Donovan McNabb, you can't forget the Philadelphia Eagles quarterback.
LIN: Jane Fonda, who's been making some news again with her new autobiography. WATSON: Jane Fonda is back in the mix. Bill Maher...
LIN: We're looking at Richard Gere.
WATSON: Richard Gere was there, as well.
There are a lot of stars out last night, including obviously CNN folks like Wolf Blitzer and Paula Zahn and others.
LIN: All right. And our Carlos Watson. Good deal, Carlos. Thanks so much for sharing fresh perspective on the latest and you know, and you know, dishing on dinner.
WATSON: Laura Bush made it a great night.
LIN: Yes. And fun. And she looked gorgeous, didn't she? All right. Good deal.
WATSON: Good to see you.
LIN: In case you're just joining us, welcome. Here's a quick look at what's happening right now in the news.
There's a troubling new development in the standoff with North Korea over its nuclear ambitions. White House chief of staff Andrew Card says it appears the communist country tested a short range missile today. But Card says the Bush administration is not surprised by the move.
And in Northern Iraq today, a suicide bomber detonated explosives at a funeral of an Iraqi Kurdish official. About 25 people were killed, and 50 others were wounded.
And in Baghdad three insurgent attacks today killed at least 13 Iraqis.
Two South Carolina teens have been rescued after being lost at sea for almost a week without food or water. They were found by fishermen off North Carolina. The boys were sunburned and dehydrated but otherwise fine.
And runaway bride Jennifer Wilbanks may have planned her disappearance way ahead of time. The FBI says her disappearance was not premeditated. But, a source who has been briefed on the investigation, tells CNN she bought her bus ticket to New Mexico several days in advance. The source says Wilbanks also prearranged her transportation to the bus station.
And our special look at protecting children from sexual predators is straight ahead.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When you look at one of these horrific pictures of abuse, unless you put your thumb over it you can't even concentrate on anything that might be in the background. So when we see these images, we paint out the victim ourselves. And that led to let's try to rebuild the picture without her in it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIN: First up, how Toronto investigators used a new investigative twist to try to save one little girl. But why it still may not be enough to catch her abuser.
Plus, I'll be speaking live with child advocate Mark Klaas. There he is. What does he think still needs to be done to bring down child pornographers. You're watching CNN LIVE SUNDAY.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LIN: You see their faces on flyers and posters. They are the faces of missing children. Some of them are kidnapped, but others are runaways who often fall into the hands of sexual predators.
All day, CNN has taken an in-depth look at this disturbing issue and examined ways to protect our children.
Child pornography is an especially challenging problem with the Internet opening up a whole new avenue for sexual predators. In Canada, investigators trying to solve a puzzling child porn case are reaching out to the public for help. CNN's David Mattingly has that story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah. So that's identified?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the girl with the rubber ball in her mouth, right?
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Every week, detectives in the Toronto Police Department Child Exploitation Section try to identify child pornography victims. From some of the vilest Internet postings imaginable.
(on camera): Do you remember clearly that first time you saw this kind of material?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I thought I was going to cry. It took a lot
MATTINGLY: It was exactly the answer he wanted to hear.
By traveling and raising the question, Gillespie is building support for more aggressive use of the public in child pornography cases.
(on camera): There were clearly people in the audience who strongly believe you need to put that girl's picture out there right now.
GILLESPIE: I was truthfully shocked that there wasn't one person in the audience made up of law enforcement and child protection workers that didn't think we should.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): Authorities in the U.S. and Canada may soon put faces of child pornography victims among those of missing children. And make them public without revealing why. But for now, while the girl's face remains out of the public eye, pedophiles around the world daily seek out her photographs, depicting acts of graphic sexual abuse.
David Mattingly, CNN, Toronto.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LIN: All right. So should police release pictures of child pornography victims if it means the victims could possibly be found and rescued? Well there are risks, as the investigator said, including possibly putting the victims' lives in jeopardy.
John Walsh is a leading expert on missing and exploited children whose own son was murdered. And he says in some cases like the one we just profiled, the risk is worth taking.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN WALSH, AMERICA'S MOST WANTED: The pictures do work. And I hope at some point they may release the picture of the little girl that's being abused. And that may lead to finding this low-life that's been exploiting and destroying her life for years.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIN: Now, you can see the full interview that I did with John Walsh on our regular program CNN SUNDAY NIGHT at 10:00 Eastern. He's got a lot more to say about that. And also, what more law enforcement needs to do.
But in the meantime, hundreds of thousands of children are reported missing every year, and all too many of those cases end tragically.
Marc Klaas knows the indescribable anguish of losing a child. Klaas' daughter, as you might recall, Polly Klaas was kidnapped right out her bedroom and murdered twelve years ago. He now heads up the Klaas Kids Foundation, an organization that works to protect children from predators. And he joins us live from San Francisco.
Marc, it's good to have you. I can't believe it's been twelve years. I remember covering that story when I worked in the San Francisco bay area. And here your life has turned to become such an advocate for these children who really need the help.
You just heard from John Walsh. He says in this particular case, this victim on the Internet -- she may have spent a good portion of her very young life in these poses, in this sort of degradation. Do you think law enforcement officials should just simply go for it? Reveal her face? Try as quickly as possible to track this young girl down?
MARC KLAAS, KLAAS KIDS FOUNDATION: Not at all. I think it's a last resort. They're going to try to exhaust every other avenue of investigation they have before they expose her face to the public. And I think Mr. Gillespie is very aware of this. And that's why he's been so reluctant to put it out there.
But as a last resort, perhaps they will have to do that. Then hopefully they can bring the agony to an end. Because it's agonizing to listen to. We can only imagine what this poor child must be going through.
LIN: Then why do you think it should be a last resort?
KLAAS: Because it's going to expose her. I mean, people are going to see her face, people are going to know who she is, they're going to know what it is that she's been through. And it may make her recovery process even more difficult knowing that she no longer has anonymity.
LIN: What if they released a photo of her, a younger version of her but at least a photo that someone out there close to her might be able to identify?
KLAAS: Well, that's not a bad idea. Another strategy they talked about was releasing photos of these child porn victims along with the photos of missing children and not really explaining what they were and why they were. I think these are strategies that are certainly worth exploring. And this is a way you can get the image out there without really giving up the anonymity and hopefully bringing the whole case to a closure, and getting these children back into a productive cycle.
Although that's so incredibly difficult. My goodness, if they've been going through this for an extended period of time, it becomes -- it just becomes almost an impossible task sometimes.
LIN: What do you think her daily life is like? She maybe as old as 12 years old. Do you think she's going to school, circulating in society?
KLAAS: I, you know, I -- I can't go there, Carol. None of us can put our mind -- ourselves in the mind of one of these predators and how they would handle one of these children and what kind of things they would allow her to do.
Depending on if she knows nothing else in life, this may be the norm for her. And she may then not be as much a threat to put out into society. But obviously she's over -- she's looked over very, very carefully. And she's probably kept very, very close to home. Although, there's something else I'd Like to say about this.
LIN: Sure.
KLAAS: You know, wear all catching up. I mean the experts in this field are the predators themselves. I think it's really interesting that Detective Gillespie was able to remove this girl from the photo and fill in the background. Because really that's what the pornographers have been doing for years, you know, they've been using the various Photoshop applications and other photo morphing applications, and moving the faces of children around from body to body, so it becomes increasingly difficult to see what is a real photo and what is a doctored photo.
So, again, you know what they've done is they've picked up on this trick, and they're using it now to their advantage. The police are. And I just think it's -- it's very cool. Very good thing for them to do.
LIN: So are you satisfied with where law enforcement is at in terms of how effective they are at cracking down on these pornographers?
KLAAS: Well, you know, pornography was almost -- child pornography was almost a dead issue prior to the Internet. And these pornographers have been able to use the Internet to great advantage. It's an international problem. So, it's not like a law enforcement in this country is going to be able to crack down and stop it.
Obviously, because of pace it's being taken much more seriously than it ever has in the past. It's getting out into the public. We're starting to get an understanding about it. We're starting to get a little bit educated about it. And if the outrage over child porn grows like the outrage over missing children, probably we'll be able to get a handle on it and law enforcement will be able to move much more forcefully and much more quickly.
So yes, I think they're doing a marvelous job. They're being innovative, they're being smart, and they're being very, very careful.
LIN: All right. Let's hope that those pornographers out there made that critical mistake.
KLAAS: Unbelievable.
LIN: Marc Klaas, thank you so much.
KLAAS: Sure.
LIN: We are going to continue to focus on the issue of missing and abused children at 10:00 Eastern in our prime-time show CNN SUNDAY NIGHT. Please join us then.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LIN: Well, every week we bring you the more personal stories from the front lines. Today, CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr has an account of an old retired combat veteran pressed back into service. Now the curious twist to the story, he isn't human.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the Pentagon, security is maintained not just by the human police officers, but by 15 working dogs who sniff for explosives. One dog is back for a farewell tour.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hey, Bill. Hey, sweety.
STARR: Bill, a 9-year-old German shepherd, retired four months ago to live with his handler, Sergeant Cecil Richardson.
SGT. CECIL RICHARDSON, PENTAGON POLICE OFFICER: Basically, he has done his time.
STARR: He is 63 years old in dog years. But now the Air Force, which owns Bill, wants him back at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's coming back on active duty, like a lot of other soldiers and sailors and marines.
STARR: The military has 1,500 dogs around the world, including Iraq and Afghanistan. But they need more.
(on camera): When Bill gets to Lackland Air Force Base, his mission will be to train human handlers on how to work with dogs just like him.
(voice-over): Officer Richardson knows dogs are need in these tense times, but he is devastated at losing his friend.
RICHARDSON: I've literally put my life in his hands on more than one occasion.
STARR: Bill is already a combat veteran.
RICHARDSON: He was here during 9/11 and worked many, many, many long hours there, clearing vehicles.
STARR: But in these busy hallways, in the offices which run wars, Bill has always been a friendly ambassador.
RICHARDSON: A lot more know him than know me. I'm usually referred to as Bill's handler or the guy that walks Bill the dog.
STARR: For many in uniform, he is a respected colleague.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE; Good boy. He's a great dog. I mean, he spent his dog years protecting us and sniffing for bombs and bad stuff. And all he asked for in return is a little wet slob sloppy kiss.
STARR: A bond between an elderly working dog and the people he has looked out for, even as national security calls him out of retirement.
RICHARDSON: That's my buddy.
STARR: Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LIN: You're never too old to come back. We're back right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LIN: Well, that's all the time we have for this hour. But coming up next, "PEOPLE IN THE NEWS" profiles Mariah Carey.
And at 8:00 Eastern, "CNN PRESENTS" takes an in depth look at infidelity in America.
At 9:00, "LARRY KING WEEKEND" and Larry's guest tonight is actor Macaulay Culkin. A key figure now in the Michael Jackson trial.
And I'll back at 10:00 Eastern tonight with my interview with John Walsh. It is part of our special look at what needs to be done to protect America's children from sexual predators.
The hour's headlines when I come back and then "PEOPLE IN THE NEWS."
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Aired May 1, 2005 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Lin. And here's what's happening right now in the news. The U.S. Navy says 41 people are missing and 5 are dead after a boat from another country sank off the coast of Somalia. Navy video released today shows German and American patrol boats rescuing 89 people Friday. It is not known what country the boat came from.
And one of the world's busiest airports is recovering from a harrowing morning. A stolen, abandoned truck prompted a terminal to be shut down at Atlanta Hartsfield/Jackson International Airport. A bomb search found nothing. And then a fire in a van destroyed six vehicles and damaged five others in a terminal parking garage.
And Israel and Turkey will set up a hotline for instant communications. Israel's prime minister made the announcement today during a visit by the Turkish prime minister. The hotline will help the two countries coordinate anti-terror efforts.
Right now we begin with a remarkable survivor story out of South Carolina. Two teenagers looking for a high seas adventure got a lot more than they bargained for. The two boys survived almost a weak at sea, clinging to their boat, and dodging sharks before they were rescued yesterday sunburned, and dehydrated but otherwise OK.
Reporter Mike Hughes from CNN affiliate WCSC talked to the boys from their hospital beds. Mike, what did they tell you?
MIKE HUGHES, WCSC CORRESPONDENT: Well, they tell me they're in good spirits. The boys right now have been at the Medical University of South Carolina here in doctors' care for about 15 hours now. Friends and family from all over the country have come in to comfort and give them support.
Of course this started last week by a simple fishing trip that turned into an experience of a lifetime. Here's what they had to say about that experience in their own words.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TROY DRISCOLL, BOAT LOST AT SEA: I was OK for the first night, and the second night. But after the second night I thought that we were not going to make it, because I thought Coast Guard was going to get us real soon. But no one was there.
JOSH LONG, RESCUED SAILOR: Basically, my thought that I might never see my family again. And I just prayed every day that God would send me home or take me to heaven.
HUGHES (voice-over): 17-year-old Josh Long and his best friend and seamate 15-year-old Troy Driscoll each say it didn't take very much time to realize their Sunday afternoon fishing trip would turn into a fear full adventure.
LONG: As soon as we got the rip tide we knew that we were in trouble.
DRISCOLL: We could see nothing but water. So it was just a mind game. And it really got to me.
HUGHES: The boys found themselves lost at sea floating seemingly helplessly for six days. Surviving on only small sea creatures they found in the salty ocean waters. Both boys credit God and each other for the strength to endure.
DRISCOLL: It was a miracle. And Josh -- if it wasn't for him and our teamwork together -- we never argued, we just encouraged eachother (INAUDIBLE) making it.
LONG: I think it was a test from God -- this whole experience was. And that was to test my faith and my best friend's faith and the faith of my family. And it just showed how everybody -- we came together and pulled through it.
HUGHES: And it was those same family and friends who welcomed the boys back with balloons, flowers and posters celebrating their survival. The teens say if there's a lesson to be learned, it's...
DRISCOLL: Be thankful what you have before reality actually hits you in your face. Just make sure you have your life in a good grip and hand hold and know that they're there for you and love them and give them more respect back.
HUGHES: And as far as getting back in the water sometime soon.
LONG: I lost every bit of gear, but as soon as I get my gear back I'm going to be out on the water. But I'm going to make sure I have two motors this time on the boat.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HUGHES: As is very apparent, both teens are in relatively good spirits after their ordeal and rescue. Remarkably, doctors say it should only take a few weeks for the boys to make a complete recovery.
Both Troy and Josh are scheduled to leave the hospital here and go home finally sometime tomorrow -- Carol.
LIN: Mike, have you heard from their parents?
HUGHES: We did speak with the parents. They have obviously overwhelmed and overjoyed by the whole thing. This experience has been going on for about a week. And about midweek here in Charleston, a lot of folks had given up on the boys. But of course, when they found out yesterday around 4:30 that they had been found alive and safe, they were beyond words.
LIN: I can imagine. And I'm sure they're pretty shocked to know that their boys may want to get back out on the water again after this adventure. We'll see about that.
All right. Thanks very much. Mike Hughes reporting in from our affiliate WCSC.
In the meantime, in international news, North Korea fired a shot heard around the world today. Apparently a test of a short-range missile that fell into the Sea of Japan. But coupled with the fact that North Korea has boldly declared it is pursuing a nuclear program, well that's enough to draw the White House's reaction on the eve of a critical conference at the United Nations.
CNN's Elaine Quijano is at the White House with more details. Elaine, what is this short range missile test really mean?
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's a good question, Carol.
The U.S. officials continue to say, first of all, that they are looking at this, they are consulting with governments that are in the region. And really that is the question, whether or not this was simply a political ploy to get attention, or in fact, could Pyongyang be headed for a nuclear test?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
QUIJANO (voice-over): Confirmation of Japanese news reports came from White House chief of staff Andrew Card.
ANDREW CARD, WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: It appears that there was a test of a short-range missile by the North Koreans. And it landed in the Sea of Japan. We're not surprised by this. The North Koreans have tested their missiles before.
QUIJANO: It may not be a surprise, but coupled with concerns over North Korea's nuclear ambitions, it does cause worry.
SEN. CHUCK HAGEL, (R) NEBRASKA: Every time they run a test that advances that technology, it's a concern.
SEN. CARL LEVIN, (D) MICHIGAN: It's an additional very discouraging evidence that this administration's policy towards North Korea is failing.
QUIJANO: Under President Bush's policy, the U.S. has not talked directly with the North Koreans about their nuclear program. Instead, the U.S. is counting on North Korea's neighbors, especially China, to pressure Pyongyang into taking part in six way talks.
CARD: We have to work together with our allies around the world, especially the Japanese, the South Koreans, the Russians and the Chinese, to demonstrate that North Korea's actions are inappropriate.
QUIJANO: But the talks have been stalled for nearly a year. And some say it's time to re-evaluate.
LEVIN: Of course we have to work on a common strategy with our allies. But that is no excuse not to talk directly with the North Koreans. It has led to real failure in these policies. The nuclear threat is increasing from North Korea as a result.
QUIJANO: News of the missile test comes just days after Vice Admiral Lowell Jacoby, the head of the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, said he believed the North Koreans have the capability to arm a missile with a nuclear device. But Pentagon officials quickly played down that statement.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUIJANO: And after Pyongyang called President Bush a Philistine last week, the president's chief of staff fired back, calling North Korean president Kim Jong-il -- saying that he is not a good person, not a good leader and accusing his government of bullying the world -- Carol.
LIN: All right, Elaine Quijano, thank you very much. We'll be following this story very closely.
Also overseas, insurgents in Iraq unleashed a third straight day of bloody attacks. A suicide bomb blew up at a funeral in Tal Afar, killing about 25 people and wounding some 50 others. The victims were burying a Kurdish official who was assassinated yesterday.
Three separate attacks in Baghdad have left at least 13 Iraqis dead. Five were Iraqi police officers killed in a gun battle with as many as 30 insurgents.
Now in another development, three people are in custody charged in connection with the apparent killing of aid worker Margaret Hassan. The suspects were detained in an overnight raid in Baghdad after authorities found an I.D. card, clothing and a handbag that apparently belonged to Hassan. The British citizen and director of C.A.R.E. was kidnapped in October. A video surfaced a month later of her apparent execution.
And a controversial chapter in the Abu Ghraib Prison scandal appears to be winding down. CNN national correspondent Susan Candiotti joins us now from Fort Hood, Texas. A plea deal for Lynndie England -- Susan.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Hi, Carol.
Tomorrow morning, new mother Lynndie England is scheduled to appear before a judge here at Fort Hood.
Now, having said all along she was not to blame for her alleged role in the Abu Ghraib Prison scandal, Lynndie England is now expected to plead guilty.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) CANDIOTTI (voice-over): It was the way Lynndie England celebrated her 21st birthday night that got her in so much trouble. Posing here with this naked Iraqi detainee, then mocking a full row of prisoners blamed for starting a prison riot, finally smiling thumbs up behind the now infamous naked human pyramid.
England was a clerk, not a guard at Abu Ghraib Prison. But she'd often spent her nights in the cell block with her boyfriend, Guard Charles Graner, defying orders against that. England said it was Graner who told her to pose for photos like these that led her own lawyer to call her the poster child of the prison scandal.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Specialist Graner, what do you think about the trial that you just got?
CANDIOTTI: Graner already has been sentenced to 10 years in a military prison. CNN has learned England has agreed to plead guilty at her court-martial starting Monday in hopes of a lighter sentence. The charges from abuse to conspiracy, could send England to prison for a decade or more. But under a deal outside the court, her lawyers are trying to limit that to as little as two years.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI: So here's how the penalty phase will work. Once a guilty plea is accepted, a jury will be seated on Tuesday to decide what the sentence will be. It could go as high as eleven years, but there are signs that both sides have agreed to as little as two years.
So if a jury comes back with anything higher than that, it will be ignored. Anything less than that, will work in England's favor -- Carol.
LIN: All right. The bar is set there. In the meantime, what's happened to her baby, Susan?
CANDIOTTI: Well, he's now about six months old. And of course, that is one reason why it is believed that Lynndie England agreed to plead guilty, in hopes of getting a light sentence.
Remember, it is widely believed, too, that the father of that baby is Charles Graner, her ex-boyfriend, who's now in prison. However, Graner is now, according to his lawyers, now said to be married to someone else, another participant in the Abu Ghraib Prison scandal, giving all of this the air of a soap opera.
LIN: All right. So somebody's got custody of the baby clearly, though?
CANDIOTTI: Oh, she does, yes. And when she goes to prison her mother will take care of the baby if, indeed, she goes to prison.
LIN: All right, Susan Candiotti, live at Fort Hood. Thank you.
In the meantime, the runaway bride is back in her home in Duluth, Georgia. Jennifer Wilbanks vanished last week. And then resurfaced yesterday in New Mexico on what was to have been her wedding day.
And we are learning new details about her strange journey today. CNN's Denise Belgrave joins me now from Duluth. Denise, what have you learned?
DENISE BELGRAVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol. Actually some new details have come out today about Jennifer Wilbanks' ordeal. A source that has been briefed on the investigation has told CNN that Jennifer actually bought the bus ticket several days before she left town.
They also told us that she had prearranged transportation in order to get to the bus station. And that source also told us that she cut her own hair on the day that she left town.
We also spoke with FBI spokesman Bill Elwell. And Elwell gave us some more detail about the time that she actually spent in Las Vegas. Let's hear what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL ELWELL, FBI SPOKESMAN: Well, according to her, she stayed in the terminal, because her funds were pretty much diminished by this time. And she had -- she had befriended a couple of individuals that she later described as being a Hispanic male and a female Caucasian. And began to talk to them. And mentioned -- they mentioned that they had been gambling in Las Vegas. And then she mentioned -- they mentioned they were heading off to Albuquerque. And at that point, based on the amount of funds she had, she decided, well, then I'll go to Albuquerque. And she traveled along with them on that last leg from Las Vegas to Albuquerque.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BELGRAVE: And when she got to Las Vegas, in fact, she got into a taxi and tried to get a hotel. And the taxi driver told her she was going to have a lot of trouble finding a hotel room, because there was a big convention in town.
So he took her just outside of town where there were some cheaper motels. And it was at that point, Elwell says, that she probably figured out that she was running out of funds and she decided to end this run and make that call home -- Carol.
LIN: All right. Thanks very much, Denise.
By the way, any word on criminal charges -- possible criminal charges?
BELGRAVE: Well, as we know, the D.A. is still thinking about those criminal charges. And he has said in the past that whether or not this was premeditated might factor in to that decision -- Carol.
LIN: All right. Thanks very much. Denise Belgrave live in Duluth. We'll be tracking this story through the night, as well. In the meantime, regaining trust lost by a child abuse scandal. What does the new pope have to do to help heal the rift in Boston's Catholic community? You're going to hear from sexual abuse survivors next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LIN: Pope Benedict XVI delivered his first Sunday address from the papal apartment windows to worshipers in St. Peter's Square. The crowd was filled with thousands of Catholics curious about the church's new leader.
American Catholics are particularly eager to see how the pope will approach the church's notorious sex abuse scandal. CNN's Jason Carroll reports from Boston.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Boston is a city where the Catholic church is in crisis, where parishioners are in pain -- priests, convicted of sexually abusing children, where a cardinal has resigned in disgrace, where donations to Catholic charities are dropping.
So how do those closest to the crisis feel about the new pope? We've brought a small group together to find out. They are victims. Ann Webb, abused by her priest when she was just 5. John King, abused at age 13. Clergymen, Father Paul Helfrich who met Cardinal Ratzinger while he was studying in Rome. And Father David Convertino (ph), Franciscan, activist, Anne Doyle and Jim Post.
(on camera): What do you think this pope should do that the last pope did not do?
ANNE DOYLE, BISHOPS ACCOUNTABILITY.ORG: If he holds -- starts here in the U.S., holds those bishops accountable for being accomplices to child rape -- let's not minimize this -- then that would be a very powerful signal to the whole world.
ANN WEBB, PRIEST ABUSE VICTIM: I'd also like to see that the bishops be held accountable and that seems to be completely off everyone's agenda.
REV. PAUL HELFRICH, CATHOLIC PRIEST: I think he will give the local bishops the chance to address it before he steps in.
CARROLL (voice-over): Some church officials believe the problem has already been addressed. In 2002, the U.S. church adopted a zero tolerance policy on sexual abuse by priests. Churches had to pay millions in court settlements. In some cases, parishes have been shut down under the financial strain.
(on camera): What do you say to those people who say, look, the church has already what acknowledged what happened here in the United States? JOHN KING, ABUSE VICTIM: They've acknowledged it. However the fact that the people that are still in charge are the ones that created the problem.
WEBB: To make some kind of a statement to the world that this was not appropriate. No one's ever that.
FATHER DAVID CONVERTINO, FRANCISCAN: I would be very surprised if the pope came out with a statement specifically about this issue in the United States in the near future, without first going through the cardinals and the bishops.
CARROLL (voice-over): Cardinal Ratzinger has made statements on this issue before he was elected pope. He blamed the media in part for blowing the story out of proportion. But as cardinal, he reopened an investigation involving a priest and oversaw tribunals of priests accused of abuse.
DOYLE: He ran this tribunal, and we didn't get any information.
CARROLL (on camera): Do you agree with that assessment?
HELFRICH: No. My understanding is that he -- his congregation has overseen these tribunals. And at least the latest information I have is those cases are now being processed.
WEBB: Transparency is the key.
CARROLL: What do you mean by that, though?
WEBB: We need -- even in the Archdiocese of Boston we do not know the names of the priests.
DOYLE: You need to open the secret archives in every diocese. Do you realize -- you think we know the truth of this crisis? We don't begin to know the truth of this crisis.
CONVERTINO: Somebody who was being interviewed on TV said when the pope wakes up in the morning the first thing he does not think about is the American church. He thinks about the whole, total picture.
CARROLL (voice-over): But many American Catholics think that Benedict XVI is wise enough to know how important they are in the global church, and how deeply this issue has hurt them.
HELFRICH: I think he's a man of conviction. And I think he is someone who would expect from clerics a high degree of moral rectitude.
JIM POST, ACTIVIST: We're Catholics, so we're a hope-filled people. And I have to believe that this pope, knowing what he does, will put this high on the agenda.
CARROLL: But victims like John King, and Ann Webb say, they have been disappointed too often to rely on hope. WEBB: My gut tells me it probably won't live up to my expectations. But my expectations are high. I hope my gut's wrong.
CARROLL: Jason Carroll, CNN, Boston.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LIN: Well, all day long, CNN has been reporting in-depth on the sexual exploitation of children. Coming up at the bottom of the hour, we are going to begin this hour's coverage with a profile of one case that has police facing a dilemma. Should the identity of child pornography victims be revealed to help capture their abusers? Why one Canadian department may change the way it conducts investigations.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LAURA BUSH, FIRST LADY: George's answer to any problem at the ranch is to cut it down with a chain saw. Which I think is why he and Cheney and Rumsfeld get along so well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIN: First lady Laura Bush was the hit of last night's White House Correspondents Association dinner in Washington. After a staged interruption of her husband's speech, she rolled out a comedy routine that brought the house down.
CNN political analyst Carlos Watson was among the dinner guests. And right now he's in our New York bureau with a full menu of other hot issues. But we've got to ask him about last night. I mean, who knew? Best-kept secret in Washington how funny the first lady is.
CARLOS WATSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: She did a great job. She was very funny. She talked about "Desperate Housewives." She made another joke that she and her mother-in-law, former first lady Barbara Bush, and Lynne Cheney all going down to a ladies club. And she just kept everyone rolling.
No one expected it. She did a fine job. A little bit reminiscent of something that Nancy Reagan did back in 1983 at a Gridiron dinner where she sang and danced a little bit and surprised people with the kind of how comfortable she was.
LIN: In fact, you just touched on it. The first lady painted the scenario that frankly it's hard to believe. You talked about going to a ladies club. This is the moment that she was talking about that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
L. BUSH: One night, after George went to bed, Lynne Cheney, Condi Rice, Karen Hughes and I went to Chippendales. I wouldn't even mention it, except Ruth Ginsburg and Sandra Day O'Connor saw us there.
I won't tell you what happened. But Lynne's Secret Service code name is now "Dollar Bill."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIN: All right. Well now we know that you know -- she missed her calling. She's got a future in her retirement maybe in a comedy act. But in more serious issues, Carlos, talk about people's retirement. I mean, obviously the president has been beating the drum on his Social Security plan. But you've actually been tipped off that there may be some ideas coming from overseas on how Americans can best afford to retire.
WATSON: Indeed. In fact, part of what's interesting, Carol, about the conversations that the president has kicked off -- it's the first big conversation about Social Security and changing the program in over 20 years. And so even some of his critics say that he deserves kudos for that. But it's likely to open up at least two additional areas of discussion.
One is what do we do about healthcare? Because as you know, many seniors, even those on Social Security, even if that is secure, they still end up spending almost all of their assets on late-term healthcare. And so there will be big conversations about Medicare and Medicaid.
And so, although you may not see resolution this year, expect that the conversation that's been kicked off will continue all the way, probably, through the next presidential election.
Another conversation would be what happens to those who don't come into life with big assets. Whether that's money from family, whether that's a home, et cetera? One idea that Tony Blair actually took from the U.S., and implemented over there in England is something called a baby bond. Where you start off life with something like 500 pounds, English pounds or in the U.S. there's a proposal from Jon Corzine and Rick Santorum, two senators, that people may start with $1,000.
And you'd be able to invest it over the years, and you may end up with $25,000 or $35,000 by the time you're 18 in order to spend on a college education or small business or other things. So that you build up your assets so that by the time you reach Social Security age, you actual actually have something else to bring to the table.
LIN: Like a retirement voucher. You know, they talk about school vouchers. This would be something for retirement that would be interesting.
WATSON: Very much -- again, I think there's credit to be had for this conversation starting. No matter what happens in terms of legislation, you're likely to hear us touch on some new ideas and some important areas including healthcare and early life assets.
LIN: All right.
Well, you know, it's hard for me to imagine Sandra Day O'Connor at Chippendales as the first lady was joking about. WATSON: Hey, who says politics isn't fun?
LIN: Yeah really! And that women in Washington can't have a good time.
All right. So she may be at Chippendale's, according to the first lady, and maybe she's surfing the Internet. You're actually expecting some surprises regarding some Internet rulings out of the U.S. Supreme Court that really could change the way all of us could surf the net.
WATSON: Very much so. You know, this past week the Supreme Court finished hearing arguments in various cases. And they've already offered up some rulings, will offer more rulings over the next four to six weeks.
And a lot of people think that the big political story around the Supreme Court this year will either be an opening on the court, which they expect in June or July, or will perhaps be a big ruling around either the "Ten Commandments Case" as its called, or property rights.
But the one maybe to watch over the long-term is a ruling on the Internet, and the use of so-called file sharing, how you share files from one site to another, or from one user from a site. And a lot of it has to do with kind of downloading things, some would say illegally, or for free.
But this ruling actually could have ramifications that may affect our ability to use the Internet for free, our ability to use it cheaply. And so watch this one. Watch it carefully. Not only the ruling, but maybe some follow-up legislation which may have a lot to say about how you use e-mail, whether or not you can go to Whitepages.com. Your ability to go to ESPN.com and download things and share them with your friends.
LIN: All right.
In the meantime, Carlos. Now that I've got you warmed up, give me the real dish on last night's correspondents' dinner. All right? Who were the celebrities out there that you saw? Who did you get to rub elbows with?
WATSON: We saw some good people. We saw Serena and Venus Williams. Elle MacPherson was there -- she's no Carol Lin, but she was there.
LIN: You're talking about the supermodel?
WATSON: Talking about the supermodel.
Tom Brady was there. A couple folks from the "West Wing" from the "Sopranos" were there, as well. Donovan McNabb, you can't forget the Philadelphia Eagles quarterback.
LIN: Jane Fonda, who's been making some news again with her new autobiography. WATSON: Jane Fonda is back in the mix. Bill Maher...
LIN: We're looking at Richard Gere.
WATSON: Richard Gere was there, as well.
There are a lot of stars out last night, including obviously CNN folks like Wolf Blitzer and Paula Zahn and others.
LIN: All right. And our Carlos Watson. Good deal, Carlos. Thanks so much for sharing fresh perspective on the latest and you know, and you know, dishing on dinner.
WATSON: Laura Bush made it a great night.
LIN: Yes. And fun. And she looked gorgeous, didn't she? All right. Good deal.
WATSON: Good to see you.
LIN: In case you're just joining us, welcome. Here's a quick look at what's happening right now in the news.
There's a troubling new development in the standoff with North Korea over its nuclear ambitions. White House chief of staff Andrew Card says it appears the communist country tested a short range missile today. But Card says the Bush administration is not surprised by the move.
And in Northern Iraq today, a suicide bomber detonated explosives at a funeral of an Iraqi Kurdish official. About 25 people were killed, and 50 others were wounded.
And in Baghdad three insurgent attacks today killed at least 13 Iraqis.
Two South Carolina teens have been rescued after being lost at sea for almost a week without food or water. They were found by fishermen off North Carolina. The boys were sunburned and dehydrated but otherwise fine.
And runaway bride Jennifer Wilbanks may have planned her disappearance way ahead of time. The FBI says her disappearance was not premeditated. But, a source who has been briefed on the investigation, tells CNN she bought her bus ticket to New Mexico several days in advance. The source says Wilbanks also prearranged her transportation to the bus station.
And our special look at protecting children from sexual predators is straight ahead.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When you look at one of these horrific pictures of abuse, unless you put your thumb over it you can't even concentrate on anything that might be in the background. So when we see these images, we paint out the victim ourselves. And that led to let's try to rebuild the picture without her in it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIN: First up, how Toronto investigators used a new investigative twist to try to save one little girl. But why it still may not be enough to catch her abuser.
Plus, I'll be speaking live with child advocate Mark Klaas. There he is. What does he think still needs to be done to bring down child pornographers. You're watching CNN LIVE SUNDAY.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LIN: You see their faces on flyers and posters. They are the faces of missing children. Some of them are kidnapped, but others are runaways who often fall into the hands of sexual predators.
All day, CNN has taken an in-depth look at this disturbing issue and examined ways to protect our children.
Child pornography is an especially challenging problem with the Internet opening up a whole new avenue for sexual predators. In Canada, investigators trying to solve a puzzling child porn case are reaching out to the public for help. CNN's David Mattingly has that story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah. So that's identified?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the girl with the rubber ball in her mouth, right?
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Every week, detectives in the Toronto Police Department Child Exploitation Section try to identify child pornography victims. From some of the vilest Internet postings imaginable.
(on camera): Do you remember clearly that first time you saw this kind of material?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I thought I was going to cry. It took a lot
MATTINGLY: It was exactly the answer he wanted to hear.
By traveling and raising the question, Gillespie is building support for more aggressive use of the public in child pornography cases.
(on camera): There were clearly people in the audience who strongly believe you need to put that girl's picture out there right now.
GILLESPIE: I was truthfully shocked that there wasn't one person in the audience made up of law enforcement and child protection workers that didn't think we should.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): Authorities in the U.S. and Canada may soon put faces of child pornography victims among those of missing children. And make them public without revealing why. But for now, while the girl's face remains out of the public eye, pedophiles around the world daily seek out her photographs, depicting acts of graphic sexual abuse.
David Mattingly, CNN, Toronto.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LIN: All right. So should police release pictures of child pornography victims if it means the victims could possibly be found and rescued? Well there are risks, as the investigator said, including possibly putting the victims' lives in jeopardy.
John Walsh is a leading expert on missing and exploited children whose own son was murdered. And he says in some cases like the one we just profiled, the risk is worth taking.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN WALSH, AMERICA'S MOST WANTED: The pictures do work. And I hope at some point they may release the picture of the little girl that's being abused. And that may lead to finding this low-life that's been exploiting and destroying her life for years.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIN: Now, you can see the full interview that I did with John Walsh on our regular program CNN SUNDAY NIGHT at 10:00 Eastern. He's got a lot more to say about that. And also, what more law enforcement needs to do.
But in the meantime, hundreds of thousands of children are reported missing every year, and all too many of those cases end tragically.
Marc Klaas knows the indescribable anguish of losing a child. Klaas' daughter, as you might recall, Polly Klaas was kidnapped right out her bedroom and murdered twelve years ago. He now heads up the Klaas Kids Foundation, an organization that works to protect children from predators. And he joins us live from San Francisco.
Marc, it's good to have you. I can't believe it's been twelve years. I remember covering that story when I worked in the San Francisco bay area. And here your life has turned to become such an advocate for these children who really need the help.
You just heard from John Walsh. He says in this particular case, this victim on the Internet -- she may have spent a good portion of her very young life in these poses, in this sort of degradation. Do you think law enforcement officials should just simply go for it? Reveal her face? Try as quickly as possible to track this young girl down?
MARC KLAAS, KLAAS KIDS FOUNDATION: Not at all. I think it's a last resort. They're going to try to exhaust every other avenue of investigation they have before they expose her face to the public. And I think Mr. Gillespie is very aware of this. And that's why he's been so reluctant to put it out there.
But as a last resort, perhaps they will have to do that. Then hopefully they can bring the agony to an end. Because it's agonizing to listen to. We can only imagine what this poor child must be going through.
LIN: Then why do you think it should be a last resort?
KLAAS: Because it's going to expose her. I mean, people are going to see her face, people are going to know who she is, they're going to know what it is that she's been through. And it may make her recovery process even more difficult knowing that she no longer has anonymity.
LIN: What if they released a photo of her, a younger version of her but at least a photo that someone out there close to her might be able to identify?
KLAAS: Well, that's not a bad idea. Another strategy they talked about was releasing photos of these child porn victims along with the photos of missing children and not really explaining what they were and why they were. I think these are strategies that are certainly worth exploring. And this is a way you can get the image out there without really giving up the anonymity and hopefully bringing the whole case to a closure, and getting these children back into a productive cycle.
Although that's so incredibly difficult. My goodness, if they've been going through this for an extended period of time, it becomes -- it just becomes almost an impossible task sometimes.
LIN: What do you think her daily life is like? She maybe as old as 12 years old. Do you think she's going to school, circulating in society?
KLAAS: I, you know, I -- I can't go there, Carol. None of us can put our mind -- ourselves in the mind of one of these predators and how they would handle one of these children and what kind of things they would allow her to do.
Depending on if she knows nothing else in life, this may be the norm for her. And she may then not be as much a threat to put out into society. But obviously she's over -- she's looked over very, very carefully. And she's probably kept very, very close to home. Although, there's something else I'd Like to say about this.
LIN: Sure.
KLAAS: You know, wear all catching up. I mean the experts in this field are the predators themselves. I think it's really interesting that Detective Gillespie was able to remove this girl from the photo and fill in the background. Because really that's what the pornographers have been doing for years, you know, they've been using the various Photoshop applications and other photo morphing applications, and moving the faces of children around from body to body, so it becomes increasingly difficult to see what is a real photo and what is a doctored photo.
So, again, you know what they've done is they've picked up on this trick, and they're using it now to their advantage. The police are. And I just think it's -- it's very cool. Very good thing for them to do.
LIN: So are you satisfied with where law enforcement is at in terms of how effective they are at cracking down on these pornographers?
KLAAS: Well, you know, pornography was almost -- child pornography was almost a dead issue prior to the Internet. And these pornographers have been able to use the Internet to great advantage. It's an international problem. So, it's not like a law enforcement in this country is going to be able to crack down and stop it.
Obviously, because of pace it's being taken much more seriously than it ever has in the past. It's getting out into the public. We're starting to get an understanding about it. We're starting to get a little bit educated about it. And if the outrage over child porn grows like the outrage over missing children, probably we'll be able to get a handle on it and law enforcement will be able to move much more forcefully and much more quickly.
So yes, I think they're doing a marvelous job. They're being innovative, they're being smart, and they're being very, very careful.
LIN: All right. Let's hope that those pornographers out there made that critical mistake.
KLAAS: Unbelievable.
LIN: Marc Klaas, thank you so much.
KLAAS: Sure.
LIN: We are going to continue to focus on the issue of missing and abused children at 10:00 Eastern in our prime-time show CNN SUNDAY NIGHT. Please join us then.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LIN: Well, every week we bring you the more personal stories from the front lines. Today, CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr has an account of an old retired combat veteran pressed back into service. Now the curious twist to the story, he isn't human.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the Pentagon, security is maintained not just by the human police officers, but by 15 working dogs who sniff for explosives. One dog is back for a farewell tour.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hey, Bill. Hey, sweety.
STARR: Bill, a 9-year-old German shepherd, retired four months ago to live with his handler, Sergeant Cecil Richardson.
SGT. CECIL RICHARDSON, PENTAGON POLICE OFFICER: Basically, he has done his time.
STARR: He is 63 years old in dog years. But now the Air Force, which owns Bill, wants him back at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's coming back on active duty, like a lot of other soldiers and sailors and marines.
STARR: The military has 1,500 dogs around the world, including Iraq and Afghanistan. But they need more.
(on camera): When Bill gets to Lackland Air Force Base, his mission will be to train human handlers on how to work with dogs just like him.
(voice-over): Officer Richardson knows dogs are need in these tense times, but he is devastated at losing his friend.
RICHARDSON: I've literally put my life in his hands on more than one occasion.
STARR: Bill is already a combat veteran.
RICHARDSON: He was here during 9/11 and worked many, many, many long hours there, clearing vehicles.
STARR: But in these busy hallways, in the offices which run wars, Bill has always been a friendly ambassador.
RICHARDSON: A lot more know him than know me. I'm usually referred to as Bill's handler or the guy that walks Bill the dog.
STARR: For many in uniform, he is a respected colleague.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE; Good boy. He's a great dog. I mean, he spent his dog years protecting us and sniffing for bombs and bad stuff. And all he asked for in return is a little wet slob sloppy kiss.
STARR: A bond between an elderly working dog and the people he has looked out for, even as national security calls him out of retirement.
RICHARDSON: That's my buddy.
STARR: Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LIN: You're never too old to come back. We're back right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LIN: Well, that's all the time we have for this hour. But coming up next, "PEOPLE IN THE NEWS" profiles Mariah Carey.
And at 8:00 Eastern, "CNN PRESENTS" takes an in depth look at infidelity in America.
At 9:00, "LARRY KING WEEKEND" and Larry's guest tonight is actor Macaulay Culkin. A key figure now in the Michael Jackson trial.
And I'll back at 10:00 Eastern tonight with my interview with John Walsh. It is part of our special look at what needs to be done to protect America's children from sexual predators.
The hour's headlines when I come back and then "PEOPLE IN THE NEWS."
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