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CNN Live Saturday

Former Hostage Jill Carroll On Her Way Back To U.S.; President Bush Reiterates Guest Work Program Support; Protests About New Orleans Elections; Illegal Immigrants Come From All Around The World; Immigration Protests In New York; Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney Claims She Was Victim In Altercation; Cassini Space Probe Developments; LSU Gives Pride To Region With Little To Cheer About

Aired April 01, 2006 - 12:00   ET

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

SOPHIA CHOI, CNN ANCHOR: Checking some stories, now in the news. Jill Carroll is getting ready to head home two days after her captors released her in Baghdad. The American journalist is now in Germany. She spent nearly three months in captivity. The latest on that story straight ahead.
In New York City, protesters gather to rally against new laws that would tighten immigration restrictions in the U.S. More on the immigration coming up.

And Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says she was speaking figuratively when she said the U.S. might have make thousands of tactical mistakes in the war against Iraq. Dogged by war protestors, Rice was in Blackburn, England today meeting with Foreign Secretary Jack Straw. About 1,500 people showed up at an earlier protest.

We're just getting word of a helicopter crash in Iraq. Authorities says a U.S. helicopter went down southwest of Baghdad. There is no information yet on any casualties. Of course we're going to bring you more details as soon as we get them.

And welcome aboard, Brazil's first astronaut joins the crew onboard the International Space Station. A Soyuz spacecraft delivered new supplies along with a replacement crew from the U.S. and Russia, Brazil's astronaut will join the team for the return trip on April 9th.

Spring forward, set your clocks ahead one hour tonight. This is your warning. Daylight savings time takes over until October 29th. For the first time in more than 30 years, most of Indiana is going to take part, but Arizona and Hawaii are sticking to the standard.

From CNN world headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Sophia Choi in today for Fredricka Whitfield and this is CNN LIVE SATURDAY. Hello, Hawaii, you're waking up to high water on Oahu. The floods and the forecast ahead. The rain really is going to stop soon, I promise. Also ahead we're going to head to a sun-soaked beach and crash spring break. Bikinis, booze, boys, risky business for college co-eds.

First, our top story, though. The scarf and robes are gone. Journalist Jill Carroll arrives in Germany sporting blue jeans and a jacket. The former hostage is on her way back now to the U.S. after nearly three months of captivity in Iraq. Word now that she's going to arrive at Boston's Logan Airport sometime tomorrow. CNN's Paula Hancocks spoke to us earlier by phone from Frankfurt.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: She's halfway home, she's resting up in Ramstein, which is the U.S. airbase here in western Germany. At the moment we saw her a little earlier, 9:00 a.m. Local time she touched down in Germany, that's 2:00 a.m. Eastern after traveling overnight from Baghdad.

So inevitably she looked tired, especially after being held captive for three months. But she did look radiant, one commentator said. She looked as though she was relieved, she looked as though she was excited, and she was chatting way with the military personnel that were escorting her from the plane and then into a military car, and then she was whisked away.

Now, a Ramstein source did tell CNN that she was then taken to a hotel. She say she wanted to write an article. We will obviously be looking forward to reading that article. We're then expecting her to go onto the United States, maybe Saturday evening, although time is getting on here in Germany. It's 5:00 p.m. local time. So it's altogether possible she could be going back Sunday morning. And I'm sure her parents cannot wait to see her.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

CHOI: Now before her release, Carroll made a video condemning the U.S. for the war in Iraq and praising the insurgents. And this video has been posted on an Islamist Web site.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JILL CARROLL, HELD HOSTAGE: And you know that he built a mountain of likes and think he needs to finally admit that to the American people and make the troops go home.

There are a lot of lies that come out of the government, calling the Mujahadeen terrorists and other things. I think it's important the American people hear from me the Mujahadeen are only trying to defend their country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHOI: Jill Carroll's father says she made that video to satisfy a final demand from her captors.

Illegal immigration, death workers, amnesty and border security, fighting words from Mexico City to Washington, D.C., pitting President Bush against some members of his own party as the Senate debates an overhaul of immigration laws. Mr. Bush is at his ranch in Crawford, Texas right now, just back from the Cancun summit.

Our White House correspondent Elaine Quijano is there and she joins us now live. Elaine, what have you got? ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon to you, Sophia. Well, at the meetings in Cancun, President Bush sat down with Mexico's President Vicente Fox, also Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper, but really the front and center issue continued to be this issue of illegal immigration. Of course, that debate red hot, taking place in Washington.

There were no breakthroughs at that Cancun summit on that particular issue but of course that has been a major source of tension between the United States and Mexico. President Bush essentially reiterating his position that he supports the idea of a controversial temporary guest worker program.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: A nation of laws can also be a welcoming nation, and I believe a guest worker program will help us rid the society and the borders of these coyotes who smuggle people in the back of 18-wheelers. I believe it will help get rid of the document forgers, I believe it will help people on both sides of our border to respect the laws of our border and enforce our borders.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUIJANO: Now, at the same time President Bush refused to say whether he would veto any final bill that came to his desk if it did not include a guest worker provision. Instead, Mr. Bush saying that he believes lawmakers will ultimately send him what he calls a comprehensive immigration bill.

Now, the president's comments came just as Republicans, some of them anyway, continued to vehemently oppose the president of this issue of a guest worker program. They see it as amnesty. One Republican lawmaker, Peter King, saying that he believes if people do go ahead and vote for this program, they should be forced to wear a letter "A" for amnesty and should come to pay for it come mid term elections in November. Sophia?

CHOI: Elaine, I know a lot of people were watching this summit closely in hopes that something would come out of it, but is there really any surprise that nothing really came of it? Because Harper's new to his office and Vicente Fox is basically leaving.

QUIJANO: Well, that's exactly right. In some ways, the very fact, though, that they were meeting at all was some bit of news. Because as you point out, this is the first meeting between the new Canadian prime minister, Stephen Harper and President Bush as leaders, and also Vicente Fox, he's nearing the end of had his term as well. What's interesting to note is how little progress has been made on this issue of immigration, which has been so divisive.

Of course, many people watching the debate going on in Washington very closely. There are an estimated 6 million illegal immigrants from Mexico who are living in the United States. The stakes very high within the president's own party, of course, fellow conservatives are saying that they believe this will be a very tough issue to get through. It seems as if there is, perhaps, going to be an impasse down the road with President Bush doing what he thinks he can do to try and move the debate and find some sort of compromise, if possible. Sophia?

CHOI: Elaine Quijano, thank you so much. And this is such a large issue, we're going to spend some time on it today. Later this hour, we're going to take you to New York City for what's being called the Great Walk in Solidarity with Immigrants. Marchers are protesting immigration reforms. Our own Chris Huntington will let us know how that is going.

And be sure to join "LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" for a "BROKEN BORDER SPECIAL REPORT" from Mexico. He'll tell you everything you need to know about illegal immigration and border security and how they impact you. That's 6:00 p.m. Eastern, 3:00 Pacific right here on CNN.

In Hawaii, the rain just keeps on falling, and it's causing some big problems. The state now under a flash flood watch. Just hours ago, flood waters rushed across much of Oahu, damaging a shopping mall and several homes and even shutting down roads and highways. It's been raining in Hawaii for, get this, nonstop nor about a month and a half. Wow!

Well, parts of the Midwestern U.S. are keeping an eye on the sky as storm clouds gather again today across that region. This is the scene in central Indiana after a night of severe storms there. Suspected tornadoes touched down in Shelby County and in suburban Indianapolis. The storms damaged at least 20 homes and caused some minor injuries.

So do people there really have a lot to worry about and what's your weather looking like? Here's Reynolds Wolf. Hi, Reynolds.

(WEATHER REPORT)

CHOI: We'll look for you then. Thanks, Reynolds.

Well, Jesse Jackson wants to stop a vote in New Orleans. We're going to tell you why after the break.

Also later, it's spring break season. We tag along for the parties and see firsthand the risks that many women might be facing.

Plus, up close and personal with Saturn and its moon. It really is out of this world. Stay tuned.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHOI: Just three weeks from today New Orleans elects a new mayor, but today, right now, a rally to stop the vote. Many New Orleans residents aren't there to cast the ballot and civil rights activists say that makes this election a sham. Our Sean Callebs is in New Orleans today with more. Hi, Sean.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Sophia, and that's exactly what a number of civil rights leaders are saying. They want to stop the scheduled April 22nd vote. The Reverence Jesse Jackson, the Reverend Al Sharpton, Bill Cosby is here, right now New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin is speaking to the hundreds of people gathered right across the street from the convention center, really.

That was, of course, one of the flash points when everything went wrong after Katrina. Now, what they're alleging is the scheduled election violates the Voting Rights Act. They say specifically for three reasons. One, there is no one list of registered voters.

Secondly, everybody knows that hundreds of thousands of people fanned out from New Orleans after the flood, they're living in Houston, they're living in Arkansas, South Carolina, Atlanta, and they say it's very difficult trying to get absentee ballots out to all of those voters as well. So they're challenging that.

Thirdly, they would like satellite voting centers set up in a number of these cities so people can actually go there and vote. So today, in fact right now, as soon as the music stops, these hundreds of people are scheduled to leave from here, walk across the bridge that leads to the west bank and continue their demonstration over there, Sophia.

CHOI: Well, we'll see if they get their satellite voting booths after all this effort but Sean, isn't there another reason for this protest as well?

CALLEBS: Yes, it's interesting because this actually started several weeks ago. Many people know that four days after the hurricane, a number of evacuees tried to march from here across the same bridge to Gretna. They wanted to leave the polluted water, the pollution of the city, but they were met by the Gretna police and other law enforcement officers as well.

They physically blocked the bridge with cars, kept the marchers from coming over, and at one point warning shots were fired over the heads of people trying to flee the city. And they were turned back and had to come back into this city.

And so a lot of people -- that is a -- that's a very raw, open nerve for a lot of people in the city. They say that and also this scheduled election are basically steeped in racism, so they're trying to bring an awareness to this. They have actually had a couple of cases before courts regarding the election. Both of those have been rejected. Right now everything is moving forward on the scheduled April 26th mayoral election.

CHOI: All righty. Sean Callebs, thanks so much.

Well, some call it a college rite of passage, spring break. Yes, the late-night parties can be fun, but they can also be dangerous. We're going to tag along with one group of young women as they head out for the night.

And later, to Saturn and beyond, what some scientists discovered on Saturn's mystery moon might surprise you. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GERRI WILLIS, CNN ANCHOR: You can get federal tax credits for making your home more energy efficient, installing items like insulation, energy efficient windows and upgrading heating and cooling systems can save you as much as $500 this April 15th. To learn more go to energystar.gov and click on tax credits.

And remember, these improvements may also qualify you for state tax rebates or incentives from your local utility company. So be sure to contact your state's energy office as well. Of course, an energy efficient home means lower energy bills over time, and your house will be that much more valuable when it comes time to sell. I'm Gerri Willis with "Your Energy Tip."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHOI: Spring break, it's all about in the sun, right? Well, yes, but it can also be a time of danger. We headed to Daytona Beach, Florida, to capture young women on spring break. Many of them seemed completely unaware that what they're doing could get them in big trouble, especially which alcohol is involved. Here's our Ted Rowlands.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a rite of passage, college kids from around the country heading south to party together in the sun.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Woo!

ROWLANDS: For most students, hangovers and sun burns are the most feared elements, but for female spring breakers, possible danger lurks everywhere.

SGT. ALBERT TOLLEY, DAYTONA BEACH POLICE: Each year our crisis center will several females who come in, they're unable to describe a course of events that led up to what they feel was a sexual assault.

ROWLANDS: According to police, many times young women are assaulted by men they just met partying. The combination of alcohol, aggressive behavior by men, and relative anonymity create a dangerous environment.

TOLLEY: It's heartbreaking, and not only that but they go home with it to their families, and we're left with, you know, very little information to go on.

ERIN WEED, FOUNDER, GIRLS FIGHT BACK: We really have to hold ourselves accountable for what happens to us.

ROWLANDS: Twenty-eight-year-old Erin Weed has dedicated her life to helping college age women stay safe. Five years ago she founded the female empowerment organization Girls Fight Back after one of her best friends, Shannon McNamara was murdered on an Illinois college campus. Erin's most important advice for girls on spring break ...

WEED: Look out for your girlfriends, because sometimes we can't look out for ourselves, in those situations we have got to look out for each other.

ROWLANDS: These girls who go to Wisconsin, they are spending the week in Daytona Beach, Florida. Typical spring breakers they spend the days on the beach and nights partying at local bars, all while piling into a single hotel room. Kyle, Emily, Nicole, and Mallory allowed a CNN producer to go along with them and videotape a night out.

At the beginning of the night, all of the girls are together, drinking, dancing, and talking to boys. But about two hours later, watch what happens. Mallory, without telling any of her friends, leaves the club with two men she barely knows. It's 11:30 p.m. and she's been drinking since noon. Eventually the other girls end up leaving as well, not knowing where Mallory has gone. Finally, they get a hold of her back at the hotel.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She'll be here in a minute.

ROWLANDS: Mallory is back.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Don't put that on tape. That was very bad.

ROWLANDS: Mallory says she lost her friends at the club and the boys simply gave her a ride, but at 1:00 a.m., Mallory left her friends again while the others stayed at the hotel, she heads to a beach bar to continue partying.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was out till about 3:00 in the morning.

ROWLANDS: The next day we gathered the girls together to watch video from the night before with safety expert Erin Weed there to analyze what happened. Let's just watch a little bit, just general stuff, you guys are out, obviously having fun. Erin, it seems like they're just having a fun time.

WEED: Yes, that's spring break. As long as they stick together and have a good time, that's probably the most important thing. My number one rule is go out with your girlfriends, go home with your girlfriends.

ROWLANDS: That rule was broken a little bit last night.

WEED: Erin and the girls agree that the decision by Mallory to leave the bar alone with two men she didn't really know is a cause for concern.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know it wasn't good that I left. I wasn't happy about it. I didn't know what to do.

WEED: There's no doubt about it you're taking a risk. I'm sure she probably took that risk knowing the situation. It's definitely not something I condone, but sticking with your friends is probably the most important thing.

UNIDENTIFIED: I've got two drinks in my hand.

ROWLANDS: Erin's advice to girls on spring break, stick in or check with friends, monitor your drinking, decide well beforehand if you plan to have sex, and trust your instincts. Overall, Erin told the girl their biggest mistake was splitting up, because in that environment, when you're alone, she says anything can happen.

(on camera): While the girls from Wisconsin made it home OK, that same night that we met them, there was an assault in town, down the street from where they were staying at this hotel. An 18-year-old girl was beaten up by a 19-year-old boy. Both of them were here on spring break.

(voice-over): According to the police report, witnesses say Dennis Skulsky (ph) wandered into an unlocked room next to him where two girls were staying, and beat up one of the girls because he was upset she didn't want his phone number.

TOLLEY: He got aggressive with one of them to the point where he was holding her neck, and he bruised her. Her nose is broken.

ROWLANDS: Seventy-four percent of women surveyed by the American Medical Association said while on spring break they used alcohol as an excuse for outrageous behavior. The experts say this usually ends up to be harmless, but in some unfortunate situations, it can be tragic.

Ted Rowlands, CNN, Daytona Beach, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHOI: And here's something else to think about. One women's health expert said sexual assault complaints seem double this time of year. She also cautions young women to be aware of date rape drugs slipped into their drinks. That story comes to us from "PAULA ZAHN NOW." Make sure to join Paula weeknights at 8:00 p.m. Eastern, 5:00 Pacific.

Taking to the streets, New Yorkers are walking in solidarity with immigrants. A live report from the route is just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHOI: A smiling Jill Carroll is now in Germany two days after her captors released her in Baghdad. The freelance journalist is due to arrive in Boston sometime tomorrow. She's been held hostage for nearly three months.

Some backtracking from secretary of state Condoleezza Rice one day after saying the U.S. made possibly thousands of tactical mistakes in the war against Iraq. She now says she was speaking figuratively, not literally. Rice is meeting in England with her British counterpart, she's been met by hundreds of protesters. And the worst is confirmed, Brazilian police say all 19 people onboard a small plane that crashed near Rio de Janeiro have been found dead. Searchers located the plane's wreckage this morning about 60 miles east of Rio.

Crews are assessing damage in Indiana today. An overnight storm might have produced as many as three tornadoes in the central section of that state. At least 20 homes were damaged and several people suffered minor injuries.

Well, pilgrims are arriving at the Vatican to mark the anniversary of the death of Pope John Paul II. Vatican officials expect more than 100,000 people. An evening vigil will mark the moment the pontiff died after a long battle with Parkinson's Disease and heart and kidney ailments.

An all new "CNN PRESENTS" looks back at the last days of Pope John Paul II. Don't miss it tonight and tomorrow at 7:00 Eastern.

Well, now back to one of the more emotional issues reverberating throughout the country: illegal immigration. Right now in New York City, marchers are protesting some new immigration reform proposals.

CNN's Chris Huntington is there and will join us by telephone in just a few moments.

Well, much of the debate over illegal immigration is focused on people who come from Mexico or Central America, but as Randi Kaye reports, many of the illegal immigrants come from other parts of the world as well.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the Lower East Side of Manhattan, but it feels like another country.

As we make our way through Chinatown's crowed streets, Peter Kwong, a professor of Asian studies at Hunter College, gives us the real story on illegal immigrants who came here in search of a dream.

PETER KWONG, PROFESSOR, HUNTER COLLEGE: They're willing to, you know, work hard, but this is a very, very bad kind of exploitation. And they don't deserve that.

KAYE (on camera): Hard to know exactly how many illegal immigrants are living here in Chinatown simply because it's tough to keep track. Most are smuggled in by plane, very few by ship. But no matter how they get here, they do so without being detected.

(voice-over): This man, who calls himself Mr. Chung (ph), tells us he's been living here illegally for two years.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We don't have legal status. We're always afraid of being catched (sic). Always worry about police coming, check our identities. KAYE: He paid a pilot $60,000 to smuggle him in. Many illegals who aren't students apply for student visas to get access to the United States.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I love China. I want to be in the United States free in this country. That's why I'm willing to pay that much money.

KWONG: One of the problems in this community is that they're illegal, they don't speak English, they have no normal skills, marketable skills.

KAYE (on camera): So they take advantage of them.

KWONG: Take advantage of them.

KAYE: They pay them nothing.

KWONG: Pay them nothing.

KAYE (voice-over): Still, $3.75 an hour is far better than the 10 cents an hour they'd earn at home. At this employment agency, Mr. Chung and countless other illegals search for work posted on paper slips, then wait.

KWONG: Employers will give a call to this office saying, you know, "I need three dishwashers. Could you send me?"

KAYE: Oftentimes, the working conditions are deplorable. Inside this unmarked building, we find a sweat shop. Men and women, mostly illegal according to our guide, sewing clothes. They are caged in. The stench is stifling.

KWONG: These people really work -- literally work from 7:00 until 8:00 or 9:00 in the evening.

KAYE (on camera): And do they get any insurance or anything like that for a job like this?

KWONG: No.

KAYE: Nothing, right?

KWONG: Nothing. If you get injured, that's your tough luck.

KAYE (voice-over): And after a long day's work, they don't have much to go home to.

KWONG: Six people living in the same room. They may share a bathroom, as well as a kitchen. Even more desperate, some of the people will share beds, rotating beds.

KAYE (on camera): If the immigration bill passes, will life change for these people?

KWONG: In some degrees, because if you're citizens, you could go to complain openly. And hopefully, they will be addressed. But right now, you can't, because if you complain, you might get yourself deported.

KAYE (voice-over): So the illegals choose to remain invisible, trading dignity to avoid deportation.

Randi Kaye, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHOI: And now to the action happening right now in New York City, where protesters are marching against those new immigration reform proposals. Chris Huntington is on the scene there.

Chris, what do you see around you?

CHRIS HUNTINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on phone): Well, Sophia, it's a march across the Brooklyn Bridge. It started -- the people amassed on the Brooklyn side of the Brooklyn Bridge, which is where we are, and we spent the better part of the morning with some of the march organizers, who are astounded at the turnout here.

It's a very sunny day, which probably helped the turnout. But police giving their best estimates that a crowd now in excess of 4,000 people, possibly 5,000 to 6,000. Difficult to say, but they are now completely covering the Brooklyn Bridge from the Brooklyn side over to Lower Manhattan where they are planning to reassemble in what's called Federal Plaza there.

And, in fact, in Federal Plaza is the Central Immigration Processing Office in New York City. And, of course, New York City is a huge center of immigrants. In fact, we've been trying to get an estimate of the potential number of illegal immigrants in New York City, and they are loose estimates, but roughly somewhere between a million, perhaps a million and a half illegal immigrants in New York City, of course, on top of the legal folks who are here as well -- Sophia.

CHOI: So, Chris, are you seeing a lot of families marching today or individuals?

HUNTINGTON: It is families. It is amazing to see -- we've seen, you know, 2-month-old babies in their mothers' arms. It's definitely a family affair. This is a -- this is an issue that really cuts to the core of people who want to come to this country or many of whom are already in this country, and simply want to play by the rules. They want to work, they want to raise their families. We've seen a lot of signs, frankly, of people saying, we to want play by the rules. We're not terrorists.

Of course, this is an issue that is all bound up in security against the potential infiltration of terrorists. And these people at this march want to very, very much draw the distinction between why they're here and all the negatives that can come with undocumented immigration. CHOI: Chris, I'm interested to know what they're saying about President Bush. I mean, here on the one hand, he's pushing for the guest worker program, but on the other hand he wants to tighten up the border.

HUNTINGTON: We have heard some chants here, and this a predominantly Latino crowd. The immigration population in New York City, of course, spans the globe, but this particular march is clearly dominated by folks from Central and South America, Mexican, Nicaraguans, people from Honduras, and we've heard many, many chants in Spanish.

We're taking the fight to the streets, President Bush is running. They pretty consistently see President Bush as part of the problem in their eyes, not part of the solution.

CHOI: I see. Chris Huntington, thank you so much.

HUNTINGTON: You're welcome.

CHOI: Be careful out there.

Also, be sure to join Lou Dobbs tonight for a "BROKEN BORDER SPECIAL REPORT" from Mexico. He's going to tell you everything you need to know about illegal immigration and border security and how they impact you. That's 6:00 p.m. Eastern, 3:00 Pacific, right here on CNN, tonight and on Sunday night.

An outspoken Congresswoman says there will be no apology. Georgia Democrat Cynthia McKinney claims she's the victim in an altercation with Capitol Police. CNN's Brian Todd looks at the controversy.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A police union official tells CNN he believes Capitol Hill police will recommend to the U.S. Attorney that charges be filed against Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney, possibly, we're told, charges of assault.

This stems from an incident earlier this week when police say McKinney walked around a security checkpoint on Capitol Hill and an officer did not recognize her.

A police union official tells CNN the officer tapped McKinney lightly on the arm seeking identification and says the congresswoman then turned around and struck the officer on the chest with her cell phone. The Georgia Democrat gives a defiant response.

REP. CYNTHIA MCKINNEY (D), GEORGIA: This whole incident was instigated by the inappropriate touching and stopping of me, a female black congresswoman. I deeply regret that this incident occurred and I am certain that after a full review of the facts I will be exonerated.

TODD: Pending possible charges, Capitol Hill police will only say they are still investigating. McKinney's attorney says he'll do some digging himself.

JAMES MYART, MCKINNEY'S ATTORNEY: We are going to seek a criminal investigation against the police officer who assaulted this congresswoman. And we are further reviewing the civil liabilities and responsibilities of the Capitol Police as well as this particular individual.

TODD: According to the National Journals Almanac of American Politics, McKinney had similar recognition issues at the White House in 1996 and 1998. The book quotes McKinney saying "I am absolutely sick and tired of having to have my appearance at the White House validated by white people."

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHOI: Stories across America on this first weekend of April. A high-speed police chase ends in an Oakland, California, living room. The car came to a stop just inches from a sleeping teenager. She dozed off on the sofa. Talk about a nightmare, huh? Police arrested the driver on stolen vehicle and parole violation charges.

New moms and dads usually count toes, but the Stevensons of Washington state, well, they're counting babies -- all five of them. There's Aniston, Belle, Camilee and Scarlett. Oh yes, and there's Weston, the lone boy. The quints weighed around three pounds apiece. They're going to spend the next month in the hospital.

And remember the coyote that was chased down in New York's Central Park? Well, the animal was about to be released into the wild, but it stopped breathing during a routine tagging procedure. The coyote's handlers say the stress of the park chase might have had a role in the animal's sudden death.

Well, would you want to travel a billion miles into space? That's how far a space probe had to go to reach Saturn, and we're going to hear what scientists learned from that incredible journey after the break.

Also, it's been a pretty tough year for Louisiana State, but finally something to cheer about. LSU is in the Final Four. And we're live in Indianapolis with a preview of tonight's big games, just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In addition, the space suit that Vinogradov, Williams and Pontes wore during their transit from the launch pad of the Baikonur cosmodrome to docking.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHOI: High above the earth, a first for the International Space Station. Brazil's first man in space, Marcos Pontes, is now aboard the station. He and his American and Russian crewmates arrived earlier today after a two day trip in a Soyuz space capsule. Pontes is scheduled to return to earth just over a week from now.

Well, let's go further into outer space now, all the way to the rings of Saturn. More than eight years ago, NASA launched a daring mission, sending the Cassini probe a billion miles into space to learn more about Saturn and, of course, the moon Titan.

Carolyn Porco is the leader of the Cassini imaging team, and she is one of the scientists featured in "Nova's Voyage to the Mystery Moon" premiering this Tuesday on PBS.

Dr. Porco, thank you so much for joining me.

CAROLYN PORCO, CASSINI IMAGING TEAM LEADER: Thanks for having me.

CHOI: Sure. I understand that you said following this project, it was like falling in love.

PORCO: Well, being a scientist is actually in some ways like being in love, because what you seek to do as a scientist is to come to know the workings of the natural world. What we're doing at Saturn is to try to understand the Saturnine environment, and it's -- you know, it's like trying to understand the other and the mystery and the wonder of the other, and that's what this is all about.

CHOI: Yes, I heard that Titan is pretty similar to what Earth was like about four billion years ago. Talk about those similarities and what you hope to learn from them.

PORCO: Well, in some regards, Titan is like what the Earth was like billions of years ago. It has a largely molecular nitrogen atmosphere like we have, there's no free oxygen in the Titan atmosphere which is what pertains to our atmosphere here early on, and there are organic compounds. And so put all those together, we have the hope of finding something out about the early Earth by studying the moon Titan.

CHOI: Well, I know that this was a massive and intricate endeavor. What was it like to get Cassini launched? It really took a lot of precision, didn't it?

PORCO: It took seven years of work, building the instruments, building the spacecraft, making sure they all worked, designing the trajectory that the spacecraft would take into the solar system and out eventually so Saturn. But it worked, and so that's what counts.

CHOI: Yes, exactly. I know so many scientists are so excited over this. Now, with the recent discovery of geysers on one of Saturn's other moons, Enceladus, and now this study of Titan, how close are we to finding evidence of life? Everyone wants to know that.

PORCO: Well, we don't want to oversell this. What we are looking for in studying Titan and also now in having this fabulous region on the south pole of Enceladus to look at, we're looking for environments that might be -- in which pre-biotic or maybe even biotic chemistry been going on.

And so we think on Enceladus, for example, we do have an environment that could be suitable for living organisms. We don't know that now. We have a lot of exploration and investigation to do yet, but that is basically one of the cardinal goals, is to see if there are other environments in our solar system that could have given rise to life.

CHOI: You know, it struck me that as you go about these explorations, you know, as a scientist, you had to have thought about how these kinds of discoveries can co-exist with certain spiritual philosophies. What are your thoughts on that?

PORCO: Well, for me personally, this endeavor of exploring the cosmic neighborhood around us and trying to understand the workings of the natural world is a very spiritual activity.

And I think the same thing that drives people to believe in a higher power is what drives scientists is try to come to know what it is that makes the world and nature the way it is, and what it is that has brought the evolution of life on our planet. I think it all drives from the same emotional vector.

CHOI: Dr. Carolyn Porco, it was wonderful talking with you and I look forward to seeing more of you on the "Nova Special: Voyage to the Mystery Moon" which premieres on Tuesday, April 4th at 8:00 p.m. Eastern on PBS. Thanks again.

PORCO: Thank you.

CHOI: All right, well, here's something else that's pretty exciting. Tip-off for the Final Four just a few hours away, and our Larry Smith is in Indiana, live, and he joins us now.

Hi, Larry.

LARRY SMITH, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Sophia. Yes, you can feel the excitement mounting here. No number one seeds in Indianapolis for this Final Four, however, there's one team that may be more prepared than the rest. I'll tell you about that when CNN LIVE SATURDAY.

REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I'm meteorologist Reynolds Wolf and here's a look at your allergy report for this morning. If you happen to be anywhere in the Northern Plains, your allergies -- well, they're pretty much nonexistent.

However, there are many cases reported in parts of Louisiana, back over to Mississippi, Alabama, and even along the Florida panhandle and in Georgia as well. Only moderate cases through portions of Texas and into the four corners. Quite bad though once you get into Utah. I'm meteorologist Reynolds Wolf, and this is your allergy report. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHOI: Four on the floor -- the NCAA Final Four play tonight, and Cinderella joins a big dance. UCLA, LSU, Florida, and George Mason. It is the first Final Four for the Patriots.

Sports correspondent Larry Smith is in Indianapolis. Hello there, friend.

SMITH: Hello there, Sophia. I tell you, as I mentioned before, you can feel the excitement mounting, people beginning to mill around a little bit and do a little bit of souvenir shopping before tonight's big game.

You mentioned the first two games tonight. The first game, George Mason versus Florida. Game two is LSU versus UCLA. The winners will meet in Monday night's championship game about 9:15 Eastern time on Monday.

Now, you know, for the LSU Tigers, this is more than just their first Final Four trip in 20 years. Seeing the purple and gold here in Indianapolis is a symbol of pride for a region that has really had little to cheer about.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SMITH (voice-over): It is called Louisiana State University. That means any win by LSU's Tigers usually brings smiles across the entire state. But since Hurricane Katrina hit, smiles have been tough to come by in Louisiana.

CHRISTY BRASHIER, LOUISIANA RESIDENT: It means a lot. I mean, our state has been through a bunch. I mean, to see that the men and the women both get to the Final Four is awesome.

SMITH: Seven months after Katrina, Baton Rouge is still housing New Orleans residents temporarily, but they are Tigers fans permanently, especially after seeing both LSU women's and men's basketball teams advance to the Final Four.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Three seconds left. Tucker, let him shoot it. He does, it's no good. Tigers are going to the Final Four!

JOHN BRADY, LSU HEAD COACH: What we're doing has given them some pride, an escape, a motivation. Whatever we're doing, we have helped those that have been in a difficult situation, and we're humbled by that.

DARREL MITCHELL, LSU SENIOR GUARD: If we can give them two hours, three hours out of the day to get their minds off all of that and they can watch us be successful, you know, I think it's a good thing for them.

SMITH: Although none of the Tigers players are from New Orleans, they all witnessed the tragedy Katrina wrought firsthand. For eight days in September, their home court was turned into a hospital. The players delivered supplies and set up shelters. Star center Glen Davis held an I.V. bag during an emergency surgery.

GLEN DAVIS, LSU SOPHOMORE FORWARD: You know, I've seen a lot of things from, you know, victims, you know, patients, hospital patients, surgeons, you know, performing surgery on a patient. You know, it was a lot of things that you would never forget.

BRADY: Our players did whatever they needed to do to help, you know, in a critical situation. And I think that all of that affected them in a way that made them closer.

SMITH: The Tigers have just one senior on their squad. But no team has had their type of experience. That allows them the wisdom to know there is nothing final about the Final Four, not when you've seen what they have.

GARRETT TEMPLE, LSU FRESHMAN GUARD: We didn't realize how much we meant to the state until we got this far, but now that we're here, that's just an added bonus, like Coach Brady said, to win it for them also.

SMITH: Larry Smith, CNN, Indianapolis.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SMITH: Well, what a story it would be for the LSU Tigers. The state of Louisiana has never won a men's national basketball championship, and so this could be the first if they get a couple of wins here as we'll watch the action tonight and see if they can come through.

You know, Sophia, if it weren't for George Mason and their Cinderella story getting to the Final Four, LSU would really be the story here at the Final Four. Let's go back to you.

CHOI: You know, you're definitely right about that. Larry, thank you so much. And Larry looked a little cold out there, Reynolds. What's the weather going to be like for him?

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

CHOI: And with that, we thank you for watching. I'm Sophia Choi in today for Fredricka Whitfield. "IN THE MONEY" begins in just a moment, but now a look at our top stories.

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