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CNN Live Saturday

Missing Milwaukee Boys' Bodies Possibly Found In Lake; 10-year- old Oklahoma Girl Found Dead In Neighbors Apartment; White House Easter Egg Roll; FEMA Is Criticizing Plaquemines Parish; Louisianians Not Receiving Government Assistance; Increasing Number Of Tent Cities In Iraq; Busy Tornado Alley; Barry Bonds Perjury Investigation; Dave Shields Interview; Dash Cams Shed Light On Reckless Drivers

Aired April 15, 2006 - 12:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: A look now at our top stories. Police in Milwaukee hope to learn today if two bodies found in a park lagoon are those of two boys missing for a month. Autopsies could be completed this afternoon. The boys disappeared after heading to the park.
A district attorney in Oklahoma plans to seek the death penalty against the suspect in the case of a missing 10-year-old girl. Kevin Underwood was arrested after a body believed to be that of the child was found in his apartment. More on that story straight ahead.

And on this day before Easter, pilgrims from around the world have gathered at the Vatican for Holy Saturday ceremonies. It's the first Easter for Pope Benedict XVI since his election as head of the Roman Catholic Church.

For most Americans, taxpayers, a two-day reprieve. Today is April 15, but because it is a Saturday, the deadline for filing in most states in most states is Monday is the deadline. Tuesday is the deadline in a half a dozen other states and the District of Columbia where Monday is a federal holiday.

From the CNN center in Atlanta, I'm Fredericka Whitfield. Welcome to CNN LIVE Saturday. Ahead, car crashes. The pictures don't lie. See what these dashboard cams caught on tape.

And later, who might be the next Lance Armstrong? We get an inside look at the Tour De France and go along for a ride.

A story we've been following for almost a month appears to be at a tragic conclusion. There were two boys, ages 11 and 12, last seen on their way to play basketball at a Milwaukee park. Late last night, two bodies were recovered from a lagoon in that park. Police haven't officially confirmed the bodies are the remains of Quadrevion Henning and Purvis Parker, but their families are convinced it's them.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLUB)

DENNIS FRAZIER, QUADREVION'S UNCLE: You know, obviously, it was hard. But if you looked at the family, I mean, you couldn't really tell. I mean, the family's holding up very, very well.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But this is devastating.

FRAZIER: Yes it is. Of course it's devastating, but like I said, it brings closure to both families and it can help us get through this next process. You know, it's no more waiting. I was saying, you know, it's like a chess match, you know, at a certain point, you know, just waiting for the police department, just waiting for leads and stuff. So we're glad that, you know, it -- I mean that can be closure right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Well, more on this story now from Ty Milburn of CNN affiliate TMJ.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TY MILBURN, TMJ REPORTER: The people of Milwaukee are waking up to heartbreaking news this morning. Those two little boys, Dre and Purvis, who have been missing for almost a month, well, this morning they are dead.

(voice-over): After weeks of an exhaustive search, police found Quadrevion Henning and Purvis Parker's bodies at one of the first places they looked. In a park just blocks away from where the boys lived.

CHIEF NAN HEGERTY, MILWAUKEE POLICE: Two people walking through this park discovered a body floating in the lagoon.

MILBURN: First found early Friday evening. The second body surfaced a few hours later. Police said the bodies were badly decomposed. Police showed family members photos of the bodies, they I.D.'d them. This while a group of neighbors and complete strangers said prayers and held a vigil outside the Henning family house.

(on camera): Police have been here all morning long putting up police tape. They say the autopsy should be done later this afternoon.

In Milwaukee, Ty Milburn reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And three days after an Oklahoma girl disappeared, a suspect with no apparent criminal history is now accused of killing her. The suspect could face the death penalty. Jamie Rose Bolin was last seen Wednesday night and today Kevin Underwood is under arrest after a body believed to be that of the missing girl was found in his apartment. More details from CNN's Ed Lavandera in Purcell, Oklahoma.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Two days of searching for 10- year-old Jamie Rose Bolin came it a devastating end Friday afternoon here in the town of Purcell, Oklahoma where authorities discovered her body in an apartment complex not too far away from where she was last seen. In fact, that is the disturbing twist to this story.

Her body was discovered in the apartment of 26-year-old Kevin Ray Underwood who lives just downstairs, 15 feet away from where Jamie Rose Bolin and her family lived in this apartment complex. The district attorney, here in Purcell, says that Underwood will be charged with first degree murder on Monday and will face the death penalty, and he says this is the most gruesome crime he has ever seen.

TIM KUYKENDALL, DISTRICT ATTORNEY: This is one of the most, if not the most, heinous, atrocious, and cruel case that I've been involved with in my 24 years as a district attorney.

LAVANDERA: the news of Jamie Rose Bolin's death came as a devastating blow to her family; in fact, the family was brought here to the police station just moments after they had discovered the body in the apartment complex. Her father collapsed her. He was taken away by ambulance and family members say he has been sedated at a local hospital.

MARK CHILES, GIRL'S UNCLE: It just happened right there in the apartment below him and you don't even know who your neighbors are and don't let your kids get away from you, because, I mean, this can happen in a flash.

LAVANDERA: Authorities here in Oklahoma will not say how Jamie Rose Bolin was killed nor will they go into any details as to how Kevin Ray Underwood came into contact with her, but they do say they will spend the weekend getting the necessary search warrants so they can search his apartment and car and be prepared to file those murder charges on Monday.

Ed Lavandera, CNN, Purcell, Oklahoma.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Take a look and listen at that, parts of the central plains might see severe weather this Easter weekend. Good Friday brought a punishing round of hail and wind to Indiana. This hailstorm was in Indianapolis. Several counties reported damage from suspected tornadoes.

And check out this scene in the Pacific Northwest. Snow fell on Good Friday in the Cascades and other areas in Washington state. There was so much snow that an avalanche warning was issued for backcountry hikers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's not many years you can actually come up to Snoqualmie in April and still find any snow at all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: More snow is expected in the region, today. The snow makes for pretty good skiing, you see, but it's also causing a mess on the area roads. Motorists are urged to use extreme caution. Our Reynolds Wolf is in the Weather Center. And you are very busy today.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: All right, not just warm weather, but seriously hot weather.

WOLF: Absolutely.

WHITFIELD: All right Reynolds, thanks so much. And you can get the latest on holiday weekend weather in your hometown by logging onto our Web site the address is CNN.com/weather.

Millions of Americans rush to file their income tax returns this weekend. President Bush uses the occasion to again ask Congress to make his tax cuts permanent. Joining us with that, CNN's White House correspondent, Elaine Quijano.

Hello Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon to you, Fredricka. President Bush is spending this Easter weekend with family at Camp David, but with Americans focusing on taxes this weekend, the president took the opportunity to once again urge Congress to extend tax cuts. In his weekly radio address, the president touted the cuts saying they are created jobs and spurred economic growth.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So far the tax relief I signed has left $880 billion with America's workers and small business owners and families. And you've used that money to fuel an economic resurgence. Our economy has added jobs for 31 months in a row, creating more than 5.1 million new jobs for American workers and the unemployment rate is now down to 4.7 percent, below the average rate for each of the past four decades.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

QUIJANO: now democrats have argued though that under the Bush administration, Americans have seen wages remain flat, also high health care costs and high heating oil and gas price. They argue that tax cuts alone will not help the American middle class.

Meantime, as for Congress, before leaving for the spring recess, members of Congress were unable to come up with a deal to extend tax cuts for capital gains and dividends. Lawmakers will try once again when they come back after the spring recess, later this month -- Fredericka.

WHITFIELD: All right Elaine Quijano thanks so much from the White House.

Well, two days from now, hundreds of children and their parents will gather at the White House for a time honored tradition, the annual Easter Egg Roll. The event is Monday, but already a line for the free tickets. This year, the kids and the special eggs won't be the only centers of attention, but same sex parents are also taking center stage. CNN's Brian Todd explains how.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dressing up -- rolling eggs, posing with Peter Rabbit. Time honored traditions at the White House Easter Egg Roll, which this year come with a twist.

(on camera): A twist that starts here at the ticket line. Where more than 100 gay and lesbian couples are converging this year to grab first come, first serve passes for this event.

JENNIFER CHRISLER, FAMILY PRIDE COALITION: I think we're making a statement certainly that we are here, that we exist, that we're raising children.

TODD: Jennifer Chrisler, a mother of twins, is organizing the effort and says it's only about giving their children access to events and creating memories. One Christian group thinks otherwise.

MARK TOOLEY, INST. ON RELIGION AND DEMOCRACY: I think the groups who are organizing this statement basically are exploiting a children's event to share their political perspective.

TODD (voice-over): Chrisler says this isn't political, but when we asked what her group things about the Bush administration's record on gays and lesbians.

CHRISLER: I believe this administration is wrong about how they think about the policies that affect gay and lesbian people and gay and lesbian families in this country.

TODD (on camera): OK, so putting that together with what you're doing and the fact that you didn't do for a democratic administration, this is not a political statement that you're making?

CHRISLER: No, this is about us being visible for the American people so that they can see that gay and lesbian parents exist in this country.

TODD: White House officials will only say this is a public event, everyone is welcome to attend. And they have no plans to make the egg roll invitation only in the future.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: That left-out feeling. Louisianians outside New Orleans say their ship has not come in, they feel they're not getting enough help after Katrina.

And buckle up, it's going to be bumpy ride. Whoa, we'll show you some car crashes you won't believe.

And know all about land, France and the dance at the pedals, well now, Ben Barns rides the race. Who's Ben Barns, you ask? Well, nobody really. My guest explains. This hour of CNN LIVE SATURDAY continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Just over a month shy of the start of the Atlantic hurricane season and now FEMA is criticizing FEMA. The agency's own internal watchdog agrees with most everybody else's conclusion. FEMA's performance after Hurricane Katrina was pitiful. Here are a few of the findings. It took FEMA about three days to grasp the magnitude of the destruction.

There were shortcomings with emergency housing, for instance FEMA trailers sat empty for months, rooms aboard cruise ships went unused and finally FEMA wasn't trained for the massive search and rescue operation in New Orleans. The report has 38 recommendations to make FEMA better.

People who live in the swampy marshes south of New Orleans, have a gripe as well. They say they're getting the ugly stepsister treatment. Gulf Coast correspondent, Susan Roesgen takes a look from this report from "ANDERSON COOPER 360."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN GULF COAST CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This lower Plaquemines Parish, part of Louisiana's beautiful coastline. It's a narrow peninsula that carries the Mississippi River from New Orleans into the Gulf of Mexico.

It was hard hit by Hurricane Katrina, but now the federal government is not willing to commit about $2 billion to protect the southern part of the parish from another hurricane, essentially abandoning 70 miles of coastline and the 14,000 people who live there.

ACY COOPER, FISHERMAN: We have equal rights, and we want our rights. We pay our taxes and we want help just like everybody else.

ROESGEN: Fisherman Acy Cooper is trying to come back from Katrina, fixing up his restaurant that got nine feet of water. Eager to welcome friends and family back home. But, there's another issue here as well. Without federally funded levee improvements this coast line could be lost.

(on camera): People here can raise their own houses to protect their own property, but they say if the government won't protect this land who will?

(voice-over): If another big hurricane hits, this parish is the last buffer between the Gulf of Mexico and New Orleans.

BENNY ROUSSELLE, PARISH PRESIDENT: If you sacrifice Plaquemines today, who do you sacrifice tomorrow? Will it be the Florida Keys, will it be the California coast? There's got to be some realization that if you start retreating and start cutting communities off, you know, it won't stop just in Plaquemines Parish.

ROESGEN: Federal officials insist it's a matter of priorities, but that explanation doesn't satisfy the people who live here.

COOPER: I fly our flag out here, just to show them my support for the United States. And now they going to turn around and forget about me? That's totally wrong. I'm showing my support. I want my support from my country.

ROESGEN: Susan Roesgen, CNN, Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And that story comes to us from "Anderson Cooper 360." You can watch Anderson weeknights at 10:00 p.m. Eastern.

Trained dogs help in the search of a black bear that killed a 6- year-old girl in the mountains of east Tennessee. The bear also mauled the girl's 2-year-old brother and mother Thursday. Officials say it's extremely rare for black bears to attack humans.

And if you live in New jersey and you smoke, do it outdoors. A state ban on smoking in bars, restaurants, and office buildings took effect this morning; it does not apply to casinos. Violators face fines up to $1,000.

It's a birth that hasn't happened in more than 50 years on California's Santa Cruz Island. A pair of bald eagles hatched a chick. Scientists call it a major step forward in a four year effort to reintroduce the eagles to that island.

Refugees in their own country, why thousands of Iraqis choose to live here instead of in their homes. We'll look at what's behind the growing number of tent cities in Iraq.

Plus, bad and potentially deadly driving caught on tape. Stories you don't want to miss straight ahead on CNN live Saturday.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: They're refugees in their own country; thousands of Iraqis fleeing their homes to escape sectarian violence. CNN's Aneesh Raman reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These are the faces of refugees in their own land. Iraqis who fled their homes, threatened with death because they were Shia or Sunni. Now living in tent cities, their numbers are exploding. Iraq's government says there are now 65,000 displaced Iraqis countrywide. Only two weeks ago, it was half that number.

DR. SAID HAKKI, DIR. IRAQI RED CRESCENT: The numbers start becoming some form a -- some way alarming sometimes at this 22nd of March when we made our first assessment and then we're doing every like three or four days, beginning to see a serious trend.

RAMAN: The head of Iraq's humanitarian group called Red Crescent; Dr. Said Hakki, is the man managing the relief effort. It was always his worst fear, camps splitting Sunni and Shia apart and at the end of February it became a reality.

After a bombing destroyed a sacred Shia shrine, Iraq spiraled toward civil war and in returning from that brink has seen formerly mixed neighborhoods stripped of residents. Shia fleeing Sunni areas, Sunni fleeing Shia areas, left with nothing but despair.

In Baghdad, Shia are still arriving at this camp. They show us a letter that threatened them death if they did not leave their homes. In Falluja at this camp for displaced Sunnis, the men are largely missing, some taken away and presumed dead, others disappeared before their families fled.

"Armed men came to our house, all with masks on," she says. "They knocked on our door" and they took her husband and they handcuffed him and they had a knife to his back. She is now on her own with her children and no support. Dr. Said is now working overtime to equip these camps with proper facilities to provide for the growing numbers and prepare for what could soon be the country's biggest problem, helping those who had little and are now left with nothing.

HAKKI: They left their schools, their work, and they all of a sudden moved to, sort of, a foreign neighborhood and they're living in a camp instead of a house.

RAMAN (on camera): And they don't know when they'll leave?

HAKKI: They don't know how long they're going to stay in these camps, yes.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RAMAN: And Fredericka, the most immediate concerns at these camps is, of course, security. Initially it was provided by local militias. Iraq government came to absorb that and put Iraqi security forces at the growing number of these camps -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And so Aneesh, how concerned are aide workers about these tents and whether they'll be able to continue to offer the kind of aid need for a lot of these people in these tent cities?

RAMAN: Well, as we head towards the summer, incredibly hot in Iraq, they are worried about the hygiene, the conditions in these camps, they are getting aid, they are getting latrines, they are getting clean drinking water, they are setting up camps so people can stay for weeks, if not months.

Now at the same time, they are trying to reverse this trend, but to do that, you have to decrease the sectarian strife in the country, you have to increase faith in Iraq's security force, those, the two overarching issues this country has been dealing with for three years now -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And is it likely that these tent cities will be a permanent fixture?

RAMAN: Well, I asked Dr. Said that, he said he has no idea how long they will be around. He's concerned they could become an increasingly permanent fixture in Iraq's landscape because the only way to end it is to deal with these overall problems in Iraq. So, they are repairing for these camps to go. They have charts that have the numbers on a daily basis and on a daily basis these numbers are increasing the number of camps, as well as the number of internally displaced Iraqis -- Fredericka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Aneesh Raman thanks so much for that update out of Baghdad.

"News Around the World" now, some of the most fierce fighting against Taliban forces in months in Afghanistan. Afghan troops backed by U.S.-led coalition forces attacked a suspected Taliban hideout near Kandahar on Friday. The battle left 41 insurgents and six afghan policemen dead.

Police in Nepal fired tear gas at the pro-democracy activists today in Katmandu. The thousands of marchers included several journalists protesting a crackdown on the media. It was the largest protest against the king in 10 days.

Up first for Chinese medicine, doctors performed the countries first partial face transplant after a bear attack left this man disfigured. A hospital statement says the man received a new cheek, upper lip, nose and an eyebrow from a single donor. The patient is reported to be in good condition.

An Australian crocodile hunter refuses to take credit for a government ban on hunting reptiles. Steve Irwin had spoken out against a proposal to allow recreational crock hunting saying it was cruel and would harm the country's international image.

Parts of the U.S. brace for severe weather this weekend, the latest update from the CNN severe weather center straight ahead.

And the true test of the athletic ability, the Tour de France. What it takes to compete in that event.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Now in the news, police believe they have found the bodies of two missing boys in Milwaukee. Autopsies are planned today on the decomposed bodies found in a park lagoon. The boys disappeared last month.

An Oklahoma man is expected to be charged with murder Monday in the death of a missing 10-year-old girl. Kevin Ray Underwood was arrested after the girl's body was found in his apartment yesterday. The prosecutor says he will seek the death penalty.

And if you haven't filed your taxes yet, better get cracking. This is your last weekend before the deadline. Don't be misled about extensions, however. If you do owe money, you still have to send a check to the IRS by the deadline even if you turn in your tax returns later.

And some pretty extreme weather across the map. Much of the nation's midsection, including the Central Plains and parts of the Midwest, face a threat of severe weather this Easter weekend. Those areas include Omaha and Kansas City. Hail and windstorms have already slammed parts of Indiana.

Let's check in now with meteorologist Reynolds Wolf -- Reynolds.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: Fires, floods and tornadoes -- the weather has been wicked. And as our Rob Marciano reports, the worst may be yet to come.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST (voice-over): Tornado Alley has been busy this spring. Nearly 500 tornadoes have struck, 300 more than last year. A very warm winter in the Plains has gotten things popping early.

That same early warm weather sparked New Mexico wildfires this week far ahead of the spring fire season. And a new outlook predicts more fires across the south and west in the coming weeks.

On the West Coast, it's been wet, wet and wet. More than two weeks of steady rain and mudslides killed a man in California Wednesday. And nine counties have been declared disaster areas. More rain is predicted for Easter Sunday.

And for the East and Gulf Coasts, hurricane season begins June 1. Forecasters were gearing up for it Friday in Orlando.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Unfortunately, it looks like another pretty active year this year. We're calling for a total of 17 named storms, nine hurricanes, and five major hurricanes which are the Category 3, 4, and 5 storms.

MARCIANO: It may be hard to imagine a hurricane season worse than last year, but after last year, anything seems possible.

Rob Marciano, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: No cheers for this slugger. Why Barry Bonds didn't hear from admiring fans at the ballpark last night.

And later, it's one of the most difficult athletic challenges in the world, the Tour de France. The ups and downs of this wild bike ride straight ahead on CNN LIVE SATURDAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a full round chorus of boos.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Ouch. Say it ain't so, Barry. Dodgers fans booed with gusto when Bonds took to the field last night in L.A. It was the Giant slugger's first game since news broke that he may be in legal hot water over his grand jury testimony about steroids three years ago.

CNN's Ted Rowlands broke the latest Bonds flap on CNN's "PAULA ZAHN NOW."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

QUESTION: Do you have anything to say about this grand jury investigation?

BARRY BONDS, BASEBALL PLAYER: No.

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Swamped by the media, Barry Bonds had nothing to say last night as he left the baseball stadium in San Francisco.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Guys, you're not supposed to be in the hallway here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You guys can't -- you guys have to go to the clubhouse.

QUESTION: We just want to know if ...

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's not speaking tonight, thank you, folks.

ROWLANDS: According to two sources familiar with the proceedings, Bonds is the focus of a grand jury probe because federal prosecutors believe he lied under oath when he testified during the 2003 BALCO scandal that he had not knowingly used steroids.

BONDS: I'm being crucified by the media.

ROWLANDS: On the ESPN2 reality show "Bonds on Bonds," Barry Bonds appeared frustrated when he acknowledged that the federal government is still investigating him. He also says he didn't lie.

BONDS: I am still being investigated by the federal government. So at this point and stage they already have my testimony so they already know what I stated. And I stand by that 100 percent. ROWLANDS: When he testified in 2003, Bonds of given immunity, meaning if he told the truth, he would not be prosecuted.

MARK STARR, SENIOR EDITOR, "NEWSWEEK": The only way you could get in trouble in that grand jury, where all of the players had immunity, was to lie and it appears that Barry Bonds may have courted that trouble.

ROWLANDS: If indeed he did, Bonds would not be the first high- profile person to make a bad situation worse.

WILLIAM CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I did not have sexual relations with that woman.

ROWLANDS: From Bill Clinton and Martha Stewart to rapper Lil' Kim, many people have lied to grand juries or federal prosecutors.

TRENT COPELAND, LEGAL ANALYST: You're Barry Bonds, you're someone like him in the public eye, you may very likely be more concerned about your legacy than you are about telling the truth.

MICHAEL RAINS, BARRY BONDS' ATTORNEY: Barry bonds is clean. Barry Bonds is a great athlete. Some people will never accept it for what it is.

ROWLANDS: Bonds and his lawyers have long maintained he's being unfairly targeted by federal prosecutors, but many legal experts say it is common for prosecutors to go after high-profile figures like Bonds.

COPELAND: The core of our judicial system is that people must tell the truth, because if Barry Bonds can be indicted for perjuring himself, then every other guy on the street has got to know that he, too, could also be charged with perjury if he doesn't tell the truth.

ROWLANDS: Barry Bonds is very close to passing Babe Ruth to become number two for most career homeruns. This should be a wonderful time for the baseball superstar, but because of speculation that he used steroids and lied about it, it isn't.

Ted Rowlands, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Stay with CNN and Paula Zahn for the very latest on this story. Don't miss Paula Zahn weeknights at 8:00 Eastern, 5:00 Pacific.

From Barry Bonds to bicycling. The Tour de France is another major sporting event under the microscope for athletes' alleged use of performance enhancing drugs.

Author Dave Shields knows the cycling world pretty well. His new novel "The Tour" takes you inside the world's biggest bicycle race, and it's number one on the amazon.com sports fiction list.

Dave joins us now from Salt Lake City. Good to see you, Dave.

DAVE SHIELDS, AUTHOR, "THE TOUR": Good to see you too, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Well, before we talk roids, let's talk about the Tour de France, grueling. How grueling?

SHIELDS: It's even -- it's difficult to describe how tough it is. Even the best athletes, they confront days -- it's three weeks long, so they confront days where they're simply -- their body fails them. They're so tired, and yet these guys get up and do it again. They go 100 miles over these enormous hills. It's a staggering accomplishment.

WHITFIELD: And they do it because they're competitors, and they also do it because there is tremendous pressure to stay in the race once you're in it and to finish this race. So tell me about the kind of pressure a lot of these athletes are up against and the risks they're willing to take to stay in.

SHIELDS: Well no doubt about it, it takes years and years to get to the level where you even have the possibility of getting invited to the Tour de France. So once you get there, you want to do everything you possibly can to finish the race, to complete it.

WHITFIELD: Everything like what?

SHIELDS: Well, I guess you're referring to -- are drugs an issue? And certainly they are in cycling. That's one of the things, one of the issues that I really covered a lot in my new book because I wanted to show people what sort of pressures the cyclists were facing.

Cycling is a sport that's really under the microscope. I can say definitively that cyclists are very, very adamant in trying to drive drugs out of their sport. But there are cheaters in every walk of life, it's not just sports. So there's a challenge there.

WHITFIELD: So is it fair that cycling, particularly the Tour de France and athletes that are involved in the Tour de France are certainly under the microscope? Do you think there is merit for that?

SHIELDS: I think there's probably a general perception that's too much focused on cycling. Too many people are thinking, yes, cycling is so bad because they're catching all these people.

The reason they're catching so many people in cycling is because cycling is more aggressive by far than football, baseball, basketball. So every time these negative stories comes out, it looks bad, but really cycling is doing itself a big favor by being -- very, very aggressively pursuing drugs.

WHITFIELD: And you mentioned a number of cyclists have failed the test of performance enhancing drugs, but at the same time is the Tour de France or even cycling as a whole really under the microscope because you've got this super-athlete like Lance Armstrong and people keep asking how in the world could he do seven? You know, how did he do five? How did he do six? How did he do seven? And now there is all this suspicion, particularly after his record win, that perhaps he may have involved himself in performance enhancing drugs but still no positive tests on that?

SHIELDS: Yes, I think you've got -- in my opinion, you have to stand on a guy's records. And Lance hasn't failed any tests. It's really sort of a sad state of affairs that we suspect people simply because they have these amazing accomplishments.

You know, it used to be there was so much joy in sport, and now every time somebody does something amazing, everybody comes out of the woodwork and says well, he had to be cheating, that's the only way he could do that. It's not a guarantee by any means that every great accomplishment we've seen is the result of cheating.

WHITFIELD: And no one knows except perhaps Lance whether he will indeed try to take on another Tour de France, at least if not in the immediate then maybe long-term. Might we be seeing him be competitive in some other way it not the Tour de France?

SHIELDS: I think it's far more likely that we see Lance competing in sports other than the Tour de France. I've heard rumors that he's interested in doing the New York Marathon. I've heard rumors that he's interesting in the Hawaiian Ironman. So he's not going to disappear from the endurance athletics scene, but I think that we're probably done in the Tour de France.

WHITFIELD: So I guess once a competitor, always a competitor.

SHIELDS: He's a driven guy.

WHITFIELD: All right. Dave Shields, and the book is "The Tour," and much applauded and certainly a top seller already on amazon.com. People are really excited about what you've been able to bring to looking inside the competition like the Tour de France. Dave Shields, thanks so much.

SHIELDS: Thank you very much.

WHITFIELD: Now take a look at this.

Crashes just like that caught on tape. What we can learn from watching these scenes, straight ahead.

And what a croc. Look what workers found waiting for them at a Florida car dealership. No kidding. The rest of that story straight ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Dash cams -- they are shedding new light on reckless drivers. You know, the ones sleepy or distracted behind the wheel and putting your life in danger?

Consumer correspondent Greg Hunter has hair raising examples of bad driving caught on tape. This story first ran on CNN's "PAULA ZAHN NOW."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GREG HUNTER, CNN CONSUMER CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was another busy morning on New York's Long Island Expressway, thousands of commuters making their way to work.

BRYAN PACELLI, CAR CRASH VICTIM: I should have been dead. There's no doubt. I still don't understand how I'm not. Don't understand it.

HUNTER: The last thing Bryan Pacelli, a father of two, remembers is traffic slowing down. Bryan is driving the black Audi. Watch the semi-trailer on the right, all of a sudden, cutting through two lanes of traffic. Bryan's car is trapped.

PACELLI: They put a blanket over me and I saw them starting to cut up the car. I remember that. I remember...

HUNTER (on camera): Did you think it was bad?

PACELLI: What?

HUNTER: When you saw them starting to cut you out of the car?

PACELLI: Yes, I knew something was bad. I knew it was bad.

HUNTER (voice-over): But it could have been worse. Safety experts say that all too often, the drivers of private cars in accidents with trucks or larger vehicles don't live to tell their story.

Bryan Pacelli was lucky to survive, although he doesn't remember much of the accident. But he knows exactly what happened, thanks to a video camera installed on the windshield of this bus traveling in the left lane. The bus ended up pushing Bryan's car under the semi- trailer.

(on camera): Every year, the most accidents in New York state happen in Long Island. In one year, there were 45,000 crashes. Many of those happened right here behind me on the Long Island Expressway. More and more of those wrecks are being caught on video and it teaches us two things: what happened and, more importantly, how they might be prevented.

(voice-over): For example, driving in the rain, distracted driving, or not keeping a safe distance from the vehicle in front -- mistakes, which could be avoided.

Bill Schoolman owns a New York transportation company. A few years ago, he installed cameras in all his vehicles. BILL SCHOOLMAN, PRESIDENT, CLASSIC TRANSPORTATION: It's a great business decision because we save lots of money on our insurance and all direct costs also of operating a bus. You save money on front ends, tires, fuel. There's lots of direct benefits that operationally you get when people drive more safely.

HUNTER: Schoolman says he saves up to $250,000 a year on insurance. He's so enthusiastic about the cameras, he's now working as a part-time consultant for the company that makes them. The cameras help him keep an eye on his drivers.

SCHOOLMAN: This camera, when mounted on the windshield, is the cop in their rearview mirror. They drive more safely, and this camera is on all the time and watching.

HUNTER: That metaphorical cop in the rear-view mirror didn't keep this taxi driver from dozing off at the wheel while he was working. Watch what happens next. As soon as he falls asleep, he loses control. It's hard to believe he walked away unhurt. But when his boss saw the video, he lost his job.

We asked Joan Claybrook, a long-time road safety advocate and former head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, to look at some video like this one from a camera in this New Jersey limousine. The driver says the car on the left was trying to cut him off and almost crashed into him. He slammed into the pole on the side of the road. The car caught fire.

JOAN CLAYBROOK, PRESIDENT, PUBLIC CITIZEN: Incredible, just coming out of nowhere and passing on the right.

HUNTER (on camera): Totally out of control.

CLAYBROOK: Right, going too fast.

HUNTER: And then blows up.

CLAYBROOK: It blows up.

HUNTER (voice-over): How did this end? The limo driver jammed his brakes on to avoid crashing into the car. The driver of the car that blew up walked away with no real injuries.

Next, we asked Claybrook to review Bryan Pacelli's accident.

CLAYBROOK: I don't think in all the years that I've driven, I've ever seen a truck behave that way. This video tells the real story, that's why it's so valuable.

HUNTER: Safety experts, like Claybrook, believe video cameras can help keep all of us safer.

CLAYBROOK: I think you can use it for training of drivers, because it will reveal what the mistakes are, what the problems are. Two, you can use it for the police to figure out exactly what happened at a crash. PACELLI: Bryan says the video has changed his view of other drivers.

HUNTER (on camera): What does this video want to make you do?

PACELLI: It makes me angry. It makes me want to, you know -- it's turned me into a safety advocate. There's plenty of people like me every day next to those, you know, trucks or buses. That was a loaded gun rolling down the street and nobody knew.

HUNTER (voice-over): Greg Hunter, CNN, Old Westbury, New York.

WHITFIELD: Man, incredible close call. And be sure to watch Paula Zahn weeknights at 8:00 p.m. Eastern, 5:00 Pacific.

No, this isn't an April Fool's joke. This nine-foot gator really did pay a visit to a Brevard County, Florida car dealership yesterday. The gator was captured and is expected to be killed because officials deemed it a threat to the area.

Well, tomorrow is the Easter bunny's big day. Ahead, we'll tell you why we honor rabbits in this spring time. Stay tuned.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Easter is a joyous religious celebration, so what's this bunny business all about? We asked our Daniel Sieberg for a "Fact Check."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANIEL SIEBERG, CNN TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Before the time of Christ, Pagans greeted the coming of spring as a time of rebirth. The Saxon goddess of spring was known as Ostara, which sounds a lot like the term we now know as Easter. Ostara had a companion, a rabbit, the most fertile animal known, and the symbol of spring's renewal.

Ostara's sacred hare, it seems, was one of the many Pagan symbols absorbed by early Christians. The first written reference to the Easter bunny comes from 16th century Germany. Germans also produced the first chocolate bunnies and built nests of grass that the Easter bunny filled with eggs, another fertility symbol.

When the Germans came to the new world, they brought their Easter traditions with them. Because of its Pagan roots, some Christians reject the Easter bunny tradition, and some avoid the term Easter, preferring less secular terms like Resurrection Sunday.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: A look at our top stories in a moment. "IN THE MONEY" is next. Here's a preview.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks.

Coming up on "IN THE MONEY," fill her up and hold the angst. See if America would be better off buying its oil from its friends.

Plus maybe its time now for some garlic and a silver bullet. We'll look at why Congress hasn't done anything about that dreaded alternative minimum tax.

And mondo fido. Pets a $34 billion a year industry in this country. We're going to meet a celebrity dog owner who treats her terriers better than some people treat their kids. Of course, the dogs are better behaved than a lot of kids.

All that and more right after a quick check of the headlines.

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