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Erin Burnett Outfront

ISIS Burns Hostage Alive, Jordan Vows Revenge; Deadly Virus Spreads Now Reported in 15 States; At Least 102 Measles Cases in 15 States; Juror Tossed from Aaron Hernandez Murder Case

Aired February 03, 2015 - 19:00   ET

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

ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: OUTFRONT tonight, breaking news. ISIS most barbaric video yet. A Jordanian pilot burned alive inside a cage. Jordan vows revenge tonight.

Plus, we talked to a family who refuses all vaccinations for their son. My guests tonight, one of the nation's leading experts on vaccines. He get death threats because of his work.

And a dramatic day in court for Aaron Hernandez, the one-time New England Patriots star now on trial for murder. Why did the judge toss out a juror today? Let's go OUTFRONT.

Good evening. I'm Erin Burnett, OUTFRONT tonight, the breaking news. Burned alive. The new ISIS video showing the execution of a Jordanian pilot captured by ISIS. The grossly footage filmed much like a movie. Shows the pilot standing in a cage with a line of fuel leading to him. The fuel slit, the man screams as he's engulfed in flames. It's a video so you gruesome it raises the brutality of ISIS to a new level. The U.S. officials tells CNN, the intelligence community has no reason to doubt the authenticity of the video.

However, here at CNN, we have decided not to show any part of the video because of its especially horrific nature and because it is for ISIS a recruiting tool. In a surprising announcement after the video was released the Jordanian government reported that the pilot Lt. Moaz al-Kasasbeh was actually killed almost a month ago on January 3rd. U.S. intelligence seems to agree telling CNN that a working theory is that the pilot was dead well before ISIS actually publicly threatened to kill him.

Outrage Jordanians today took to the streets. It was loud, it was angry, and they are calling for revenge. The fate of this pilot deeply personal for Jordanians. That pilot has been in captivity since December flying a fighter jet on behalf of the American lead coalition against ISIS. King Abdullah is in the United States. He met with President Obama just a few moments ago and then got on a plane cutting his visit short after this crisis to return to Jordan. President Obama vowed his support and said that the video if authentic was further proof of the viciousness and barbarity of ISIS.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRES. BARACK OBAMA (D), UNITED STATES: I think we will redouble the vigilance and determination on the part of a global coalition to make sure that they are degraded and ultimately defeated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: Jim Sciutto is OUTFRONT tonight. And Jim, this video more brutal than anybody thought possible. And that is, it's hard to even comprehend saying a sentence like that. But that's the truth.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: It is true. I've seen the video for our own reporting and I've seen a lot of things like this competing in their brutality. And I can say, I've never seen anything like this. And tonight, I'm told Jordan preparing a broad base response to this murder. A broad range of options on the table including possibility of military action as well as the possible execution of ISIS prisoners in Jordanian hands. The President, the king rather of Jordan now gauging public response. Tonight at least in public demonstrations though, it's clear that if this was intended to sap support for the coalition air campaign, in fact, it's done the opposite.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SCIUTTO (voice-over): In Jordan tonight, mourning and anger. Hundreds gathering in Amman in the hometown of the Lieutenant Moaz al- Kasasbeh demanding revenge. ISIS released gruesome images of the pilot's death that CNN has decided not to air. They show him burned alive confined to a cage raising ISIS' already brutal terror tactics to a new and shocking level. Jordan announced that the killing likely took place a full month ago and vowed what a spokesman called, quote, "an earth shaking retaliation."

UNIDENTIFIED MAN (through a translator): His blood will not be shed in vain. For those who assassinated Moaz, their punishment will be a revenge that equals the tragedy that has befallen the Jordanians.

SCIUTTO: The horrific news coincided with a visit by Jordan's King Abdullah to Washington. He's cutting his trip short to return home.

President Obama and other U.S. officials expressed solidarity for a close ally in the U.S. led military coalition against ISIS.

OBAMA: It's just one more indication of the viciousness and barbaric of this organization. And I think it will redouble the vigilance and determination on the part of a global coalition to make sure that they are degraded and ultimately defeated.

SCIUTTO: Still there's been question since the beginning of the air campaign about whether air power alone will be enough to defeat the terror group. Today in an interview with CNN's Dana Bash, Senator Lindsey Graham argued for thousands of American ground troops.

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE: There's no way -- that's possible without American ground component. You're looking at about 10,000. Now, here's the question. Is the threat to the homeland sufficient from ISIL to justify that commitment? I believe it is. SCIUTTO: While flying a coalition mission over Syria in December the

pilot was captured by ISIS when his F-16 jet went down. Kasasbeh's fate became entangled in the failed effort to free the Japanese hostage Kenji Goto. Who ISIS executed just on Saturday. Throughout Jordan repeatedly demanded proof of life for the pilot which never came. Now it turns out that Lieutenant Kasasbeh may have been dead long before any negotiation began.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SCIUTTO: Still a lot of questions tonight as to Jordan is saying with certainty that it was January 3rd, that exact date that they believe the pilot was killed. I spoke with U.S. intelligence officials who say, that there was unverified and corroborated information that he was dead before the release of today's video but there was no specificity at least from the U.S. point of view that it was January 3rd when the killing happened, but it's likely however tonight that Erin, that Jordanian intelligence did their own analysis looking at all the cues in that video as well as other assets that they have on the ground to come to that determination it was a month ago that this murder happened.

BURNETT: It's pretty incredible. And that they were sitting on a video like that waiting for what they deemed the right moment to release it if anything makes it more barbaric. Thanks so much to you, Jim Sciutto.

Jomana Karadsheh is in Amman, Jordan. And Jomana, you have seen anger, deep anger and loud anger on the streets of Amman, Jordan tonight.

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Erin, real shock, anger and disgust here on the streets of Amman and also demonstrations not only taking place here in the capital but also in southern Jordan in the hometown of the pilot Moaz al-Kasasbeh. People are calling for blood. They are calling for revenge. They say that his blood should not be shed in vain. And they are hoping now that their government is going to strike back. Of course, we're hearing from the Jordanian army and the Jordanian government saying that they are going to have a harsh response to this. Amongst the calls that we were hearing tonight on the streets, Erin, people were calling for the execution of jihadist, of members of al Qaeda, ISIS, prisoners that are being held in Jordanian prisons. One man or one of those protesters was holding a banner that said we should burn their prisoners like they have burned our pilot. So now, all eyes are on the Jordanian government, the Jordanian king to see what response they will have to this. A lot of pressure on them to act fast -- Erin.

BURNETT: Jomana, thank you very much. Reporting live from Amman, Jordan tonight.

And now OUTFRONT, the State Department Spokeswoman Jen Psaki. Good to have you with us. We always appreciate it.

JEN PSAKI, STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESWOMAN: Great to be here. BURNETT: Jordan has vowed revenge. You just heard Jomana reporting about the angry calls in the streets. Some people with signs saying that Jordan should burn ISIS related prisoners the same way that ISIS burned their pilot. Specifically they're calling for the immediate execution of that Iraqi woman. That ISIS had demanded an exchange for the pilot. Would the United States support that?

PSAKI: Well, Erin, let me first say that unfortunately the United States has dealt with some of these tragedies of losing our own citizens. And we certainly understand and feel for the pain of the people of Jordan as they are going through this. This video I think as everyone knows only became public in the last 12 hours. So, it's very new, it's very fresh and understandable that people are reacting strongly. Look, I think the government of Jordan, you mentioned in your earlier reporting that the king is heading back to Jordan. The government will decide what they'll do. We support the government of Jordan. But I'm not going to get ahead of anything that's determined. I would remind you that of course the woman they're holding is somebody who, you know, was attempting to commit a terrorist act. But we'll see what happens here and I'm not going to pre-judge that outcome.

BURNETT: Right. And of course you're talking about the female suicide bomber. She was on death row. Right?

PSAKI: Correct.

BURNETT: If they go ahead with goober calls and accelerate her execution. Of course, in a sense that would be extrajudicial, right? We'll be going outside the system. If they do that. I understand your point. You're going to support Jordan in whatever they do, but do you fear that this will hasten the killing of a 26-year-old woman, an American female that ISIS still has hostage tonight.

PSAKI: Well, Erin, I think you know how strongly we feel about doing everything we can to help bring any American citizen that's being held home whether that's by ISIS or any organization around the world. You know, look, I think we're not going to bow a terrorist, we've seen the President say that today. That's how the secretary feels. We're not going to bow to their threats and their rhetoric. And again, I think we take a number of steps we can behind the scenes to do everything we can do bring these people home. But I'm not going to predict what's going to happen. And we can bow to the threats that they make out there.

BURNETT: So, the President today, President Obama obviously responded to this. He said the killing by ISIS in his words, quote, "will redouble the vigilance and determination on the part of a global coalition." What is that mean specifically for the United States? What is the United States going to do differently?

PSAKI: Well, over the course of the last several months we've picked up the number of air strikes we have done. We worked to equip and provide assistance in the form of military assistance. We have done more training. We're about to start our training equipped program. So, this have been a progressive build up over the past couple of months. We've seen some success in parts of Iraq. Again, we're kind of in the building process in Syria now. And what he means is just we remain as committed as we were a week ago. We're not going to bow to the threats of terrorists. We're going to stand with our coalition, we're going to stand with the other members who are out there and we're going to keep fighting to degrade and defeat ISIL.

BURNETT: So, in Jordan there had been demonstrations in the past few days. Jordanians very angry about Jordan's partnership and the coalition's partnership with the United States fighting against ISIS. They have had enough of it. Obviously what has happened might strengthen that resolve. It might also change it and make them more against ISIS. It's unclear but my question to you is, are you concerned about backlash against the United States? That this Arab coalition may become more fragile and it may become more on the United States to fight this war.

PSAKI: Well, to date, Erin, it's been not just a coalition of Arab countries. It's been more than 60 countries in entities fighting this fight. And there are many European countries that are doing air strikes in Iraq and helping to provide supplies. Australia has given a range of supplies. But look, I think it's too preliminary to do analysis as you suggested of what the reaction on the ground is going to be. That's why the king is returning and obviously being at home in a time of crisis is an important thing for any leader to do. But unfortunately, countries, including the United States, including many of the countries in the coalition have dealt with these tragedies in the past. And we've continue to fight this fight. And that's what we anticipate will happen moving forward.

BURNETT: All right. Jen Psaki, thank you very much.

PSAKI: Thank you, Erin.

BURNETT: All right. Jen Psaki, thank you very much for your time tonight.

PSAKI: Thank you, Erin.

BURNETT: Spokeswoman as we said for the State Department. OUTFRONT next, inside ISIS horrific video. Our most seasoned terror analyst are speechless over the brutality. We're going to tell you exactly what happened step by step. In that video, we're not going to show it to you but we will explain it to you. Is this a turning point in the war on terror?

Plus, a measles outbreak, a mother explains why her son has never been vaccinated for anything and why he'd be better off getting the measles.

And OUTFRONT tonight, the nation's leading expert on vaccines. His message for parents who won't vaccinate their kids and mine on polio.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: Breaking news, Jordan's president just wrapping up a meeting with President Obama after a new video from ISIS appears to show the most disgusting act of murder to date from the terror group. Burning alive a Jordanian pilot in a cage. Tonight, the U.S. intelligence community says there is little reason to doubt the authenticity of the video. CNN has decided not to show any of the pictures. We can tell you though that it was highly produced.

Barbara Starr is live OUTFRONT tonight at the Pentagon. And Barbara, we're not showing the video but it's important to say that unlike, it is very much unlike any of the other videos we have seen in the past. When I watched it today, what does it show?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Erin, if you thought the beheaded videos were stomach churning and disgusting enough, this goes yet another step. The pilot apparently in cage. They are throwing fuel on him. He appears to already have been beaten. There are bruises. They throw fuel on him. They light him on fire and he perishes within minutes. This is just something that has horrified the world. But it's also horrified the Islamic world and people across the Middle East as they look at it. And this is what King Abdullah of Jordan is flying home to tonight in Amman, Jordan. People very upset, people very distressed. The tribes of Jordan which provides political influence upset and also the Jordanian military obviously having lost one of their own -- Erin.

BURNETT: And Barbara, you know, when we take this video into account, right? This is a Muslim, a young Muslim man who is walked into cage. They light the fuel, right? Leads into the cage and he's literally burned alive as he gets down on his knees and then he falls back in agony. They are burning a Muslim man alive. These videos have been used by ISIS as a recruiting tool. Is this is something that is actually going to turn people away?

STARR: Well, this is what Jordan, the U.S. and the entire coalition hopes because Erin, you touched on a very important point. In the tenants of Islam, any man burning another man, any human burning human, even burning an animal, punishment by fire is prohibited in Islam at the hands of another. So, I can tell you tonight, many people across the Islamic world are viewing this video as the ultimate, ultimate insult to the faith, the true faith of Islam and it is only adding to their upset and their distress. The fact that they've chose this method to kill him which isn't the front to Islam is very upsetting to people in the region -- Erin.

BURNETT: All right. Barbara Starr, thank you very much. And OUTFRONT now, former CIA officer Gary Berntsen. National security analyst and former CIA operative Bob Baer. And Juan Zarate, the former deputy National Security adviser for combatting terrorism. Juan, this video is something we have never seen before. It's a new level even for ISIS. Why would they burn this man alive?

JUAN ZARATE, FORMER DEPUTY NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: Well, Erin, you have to keep in mind, that ISIS is in the business of propaganda and terrorism is the business of theater. In many ways I think they are upping the ante in terms of the attention and brutality that they are engaged in. I think there's also something to this and that I think they're sending a clear message to the Arab members of the coalition and certainly Sunni Muslim who is may be engaged in the fight against ISIS that this is the way they're going to be treated. They're going to be treated brutally and in fact maybe perhaps more brutally than other members of the coalition. And so, I think this is part of a broader propaganda campaign meant to shock and create awe and certainly to terrorize and certainly to send a message to Jordan and those fighting that this is what will come if they're captured.

BURNETT: It did shocked Bob, it shocked you. And they obviously what we understand is they filmed this, and have been sitting on this video for months.

BOB BAER, FORMER CIA OPERATIVE: Erin, I have never seen, four years, I have been in the Middle East such brutality that will shock everybody. As Barbara said, this is prohibited by Islam. It's going to have a profound negative effect against the Islamic State across the Middle East. And not only that, you have to look at Islamic State, it sits in tribal areas. This pilot was a member of a tribe. The tribe took put on warning, if you don't obey us, you will pay. On the other hand, this is going to fritter away at their support in the short run and in the long run. And I think this is just one of the last nails in the Islamic State's coffin and it's not going to be around forever, a couple of years maybe.

BURNETT: I mean, Gary, is that your takeaway? I mean, this video was highly produced. And when I talked about what happened, they've actually forced the pilot to play a role. They've sort of made it like the movie. He had to talked and play a role and walked in as if he was an actor.

GARY BERNTSEN, RETIRED CIA OFFICER: Right.

BURNETT: Obviously, it was not acting, I mean --

BERNTSEN: Clearly an effort to intimidate those Arab states that will fight against ISIS. It is of course barbaric. We've seen people burned alive in places like South Africa where they put tires around people. Now, everyone was horrified by that as well. But, you know, this is just more efforts to shock, to you know, look, you know, Islamic fundamentals, Jihadists, you know, kidnapped three hundred girls, you know, in Nigeria, kill 141 school children in Pakistan. They are not operating under the same, you know, more level of morality that the western world has established. They will do anything at all to shock and intimidate, anything.

BURNETT: And Bob, what do you make of the timing of the video. Because I think what's stunning about this is that this happened and it happened a month ago. Right? So, they did this, they went through this elaborate act, this production, they went through a month of fake negotiations. And sat on this video, they sat on this video.

BAER: Well, Erin, King Abdullah's visit to Washington, they want their ideas to portray him as a western pawn. Look, he's in Washington, he wasn't taking care of the prisoner. He wasn't taking care of his country. His real loyalties aren't with Islam. They're with the west. I think it's not going to make any difference to Jordanians because they really don't have a good grasp that they brought this entire coalition down on their heads by these soulless murders. And they're going to continue to do it. So, they're calculations as Gary said, or are not ours either in morality or propaganda. And you know, this video is just, I can't see how horrific it is, and how this is going to turn more importantly than the West Muslims against this movement which does need to be destroyed as quickly as possible.

BURNETT: And Juan, what can the U.S. do to save that 26-year-old woman? Do we have chance to save her?

ZARATE: Well, I think there's always hope if you have someone alive and there's proof of life. I think part of this is gathering more intelligence trying to find out where she is, where they're holding the hostages. We have certainly gathered that kind of intelligence in the past. One of the things the Jordanians can do incredibly well in the region and Gary and Bob know this better than most, is to gather key intelligence through their tribal sources and other key contacts. And so, I imagine the Jordanians are going to probably up their effort on intelligence collection certainly perhaps bring more mettle to the fight. And I think part of what we need to do is try to figure out where they are holding the other hostages and try to rescue them. Because it's clear ISIS is not going to negotiate in good faith and it's clear that they realized that these hostages are strategic pawns to be used for their own purposes.

BURNETT: All right. Thanks very much to all three of you. And next, the measles outbreak. We're going to talk to a woman who has never had her son vaccinated. She fears vaccines could cause cancer or autism.

And former New England Patriot star Aaron Hernandez now on trial for murder. Today, a juror thrown out of case. Why? That's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: The measles OUTBREAK is growing tonight. There are now measles cases in 15 states with two just reported today in Nevada. The Southern Nevada Health District tells CNN the cases are linked to one another. So far neither has been traced to the Disney Land outbreak in California. That's the starting point of the latest outbreak. Which means this is now not even linked to that. This is now bigger than that. The latest scare are raising important questions about why parents are increasingly choosing not to vaccinate their children.

Our Dan Simon begins our coverage tonight, OUTFRONT with one family's story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Your son is now 8-years- old. Has he ever been vaccinated for anything?

KELLY MCMENIMEN, HAS NOT VACCINATED SON: He's never been vaccinated for anything. No. SIMON: Kelly McMenimen is a single mother in Marin County, California

an area with an unusually high number of parents who refuse to vaccinate their children. Some schools approaching 50 percent when it comes to personal exemptions. We met Kelly to try to understand her concerns about immunizing her 8-year-old son to bias. However, unsupported they are in the medical community.

(on camera): When people see this tonight, they may accuse you of being an irresponsible parent, what do you say to them?

MCMENIMEN: If I believed that my decision was actually doing any harm to other children, I wouldn't make this decision. But I don't believe that.

SIMON (voice-over): Like others against vaccines, Kelly says, she is convinced that they can cause multiple complications including cancer, nervous system disorders and the familiar risk of autism. She says it happened with her friend's child.

MCMENIMEN: From the day that they had the MMR, from that day forward he started to exhibit signs of autism, which he had never exhibited before.

SIMON (voice-over): A belief thoroughly debunked by the medical community. Kelly tells me her son may, in fact, be better off in the long run by getting a disease like measles.

MCMENIMEN: It may be better for the children to contract these when they are children and build their immunity.

SIMON: But don't tell that to this Marin County pediatrician who refuses to accept patients who don't vaccinate.

DR. NELSON BRANCO, PEDIATRICIAN IN MARIN COUNTY, CALIFORNIA: I have seen children with brain damage from measles, and I never want to see that again.

SIMON (on camera): I'm not here to debate you. I'm here to understand your point of view. What do you say to those who argue that the medical research is overwhelming that vaccines are safe and they prevent serious diseases?

MCMENIMEN: I think it's very difficult for me and many other people in this country to trust the medical system when it's largely become a for-profit industry.

SIMON (voice-over): Distrust a common refrain of those opposed to vaccines, which Kelly insists she's not. She just doesn't want them for her child.

(on camera): How would you feel if your son got the measles and then got another person sick? He infected somebody else with the measles, and that person ended up being really sick and died. How would you be able to handle that as a parent knowing that?

MCMENIMEN: That would be absolutely awful if something like that happened, just as it would be awful if I accidental hit another car and a child died in that car crash. I don't think that my son is going to put any other children at risk either.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SIMON: And there are a lot of people out here just like Kelly. We just wanted to get a sense of why they do.

And, Erin, we talked about some schools in Marin County approaching 50 percent when it comes to the unvaccinated. There were actually some third world countries that do better than that -- countries like Iraq, Papua New Guinea, Syria, Chad. Believe it or not, children in those countries do better when it comes to some of the vaccination rates in parts of Marin County. I think some people will have a hard time believing that, Erin.

BURNETT: I think they will. But it's stunning and important statistic. Dan Simon, thank you very much.

Only a few countries in the world would have vaccination rates below Marin County.

Joining me OUTFRONT, the nation's leading expert on vaccines and infectious disease, Dr. Paul Offit. He's the author of "Deadly Choices: How the Anti-Vaccine Movement Threatens Us All." He co- invented a vaccine.

Dr. Offit, thank you for being with us.

You just heard the mother Dan Simon interviewed. Look, she passionately believes in what she's saying. You heard what she said. If I believe that my son could cause harm to other children by not being vaccinated, I wouldn't be doing this. But yet, she thinks these diseases can build her son's immunity. What do you say to her?

DR. PAUL OFFIT, "DEADLY CHOICES" AUTHOR: Well, I think -- I think, sadly, people are compelled by fear much more than reason. I think the reason that people like this particular mother chose not to vaccinate her child is because she doesn't fear the disease. But, you know, I certainly fear the disease, because I live through the 1991 Philadelphia measles epidemic where in a 3-month period, we had 1,400 cases of measles and nine deaths.

Measles can cause serious permanent harm and can kill you. I just -- I think it's a shame that what we have to be seeing in this country right now which is measles coming back now with more than 100 cases, that we have to sort of suffer our bad choices by watching children suffer diseases which are preventable. I mean, it's always the children that seem to suffer our ignorance.

BURNETT: Of course, it is the children in these cases.

You heard her specifically mention autism. She said something I've heard other parents say, you heard it. Everyone watching has heard. And maybe in their heart of hearts, they still have a fear about it. So, let me put it on the table. She said the day her friend's child

got the MMR vaccine, the autism struck. I hear people say that, the day they got the MMR, the light went out in their eyes. I know the study that alleged this link was fraudulent. It's been retracted. There had been multiple studies showing no link to autism.

But yet, people are still afraid. You've done a lot of work on it. Can you explain to people why there is no link between autism and the MMR vaccine?

OFFIT: See, I think it's perfectly fair to ask the question. You know, as far as a mother is concerned, my child was fine. They got the MMR vaccine and they weren't fine. They got signs and symptoms of autism.

Could the vaccine have done it? That's a reasonable question. It's a question that can be answered in a scientific venue and has been. Now, you have more than 14 studies done on three continents involving hundreds of thousands of children, who did or didn't get the MMR vaccine and those who got the MMR vaccine were at no greater risk of autism, than those who didn't get it.

So, a choice not to get an MMR vaccine doesn't lessen your risk of autism. All it does is increase your risk of measles, mumps and rubella.

BURNETT: You are considered a lightning rod. You've been called the devil's servant. You've been Dr. Profit because you co-invented a vaccine. You get death threats.

And yet, you still keep coming out here. You're coming out here tonight. You're telling people these vaccines are not just safe but crucial and necessary.

Why is this worth it to you?

OFFIT: I think at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, we care deeply about children and their health. There's not a year that goes at our hospital where there's not a child who suffers who's admitted and suffers a disease, were -- in fact, dies of the disease the parent had chosen not to vaccinate them. It's those children who's always in my mind, and who's always frankly in minds.

So, it's frankly easy to be a child's advocate. I mean, the eyes on the prize. These children will stand up for them. I think at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, that's what we do.

BURNETT: All right. Dr. Offit, thank you very much.

There's a lot more you can read about Dr. Offit and his work online.

Look, I've been very open about my view on vaccinations. I am vaccinating my 1-year-old son. We know measles killed 400 to 500 people a year before the MMR vaccine. Some people, though, that measles is a childhood rite of passage and they're not worried. When I hear that, I think about something every American should worry

about. That's polio. Children are vaccinated against polio, just like their vaccinated against MMR. Here is a picture of some American toddlers with polio. They're never going to walk again like they could. And here are children who never ever walked again because of polio.

This was this country before the polio vaccine. According to the CDC in the late 1940s and 1950s, polio crippled an average of more than 35,000 people in the United States every single year. People who are vaccinating now have never seen anyone with polio. People who don't vaccinate probably don't imagine their child never walking again because of polio. They certainly don't imagine how they would feel if their child infected another child with polio.

They can't imagine standing in line like these Americans waiting for that first polio vaccine in the hopes their lives would be protected from a great evil. They don't think about these things because polio for all intents and purposes is gone and forgotten. But what hopefully more people will realize in this whole national conversation is that the only reason polio is, quote-unquote, "gone" is because of mass vaccinations.

We need to keep vaccinating. This is not about choice. This is about our moral responsibility to our children and to other people's children.

OUTFRONT, next, Aaron Hernandez, the former star receiver, on trial for a brutal murder. The victim's girlfriend testifies the two men were friends, with a fondness for marijuana.

And Bobbi Kristina Brown, new details tonight on one of the men who found her unresponsive in a bathtub, his arrest record of weapons and drugs.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: Tonight, a shakeup in the high profile murder trial involving an NFL star. A judge dismissing a juror in the Aaron Hernandez case after it was revealed that she was a bigger Patriots fan than she had led on. The dismissal taking place as we're learning new details about Hernandez's odd behavior in the hours of being accused of orchestrating the murder of his friend.

Susan Candiotti is OUTFRONT in Boston.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Aaron Hernandez loses a possibly ally when a female juror gets the boot, thrown off a jury on day three, after the trial judge questions her fairness.

JUDGE: The juror expressed an opinion to the effect that in the absence of a weapon, it would be hard to convict. CANDIOTTI: That opinion could have helped the defense because the .45

caliber gun used to kill Odin Lloyd is still missing. Prosecutors say the former New England Patriot tight end is seen holding that weapon in this home security video recorded minutes after Lloyd's death in 2013. His girlfriend breaking down in tears on the witness stand Tuesday, describing the moment police called to tell her Lloyd had been shot dead.

PROSECUTOR: What did you learn?

SHANEAH JENKINS, ODIN LLOYD'S GIRLFRIEND: That Odin was dead.

CANDIOTTI: Prosecutors have Lloyd on video getting picked up at his house in car driven by Hernandez, taken to an industrial park near Hernandez's home where he's shot six times. After learning Lloyd is dead, Jenkins tells jurors she drives to Lloyd's home on Fayston Street to console his family. Prosecutors asked whether Hernandez does the same thing.

PROSECUTOR: When, if ever, did you see the defendant at Fayston Street?

DEFENSE: Objection.

JUDGE: Overrule.

JENKINS: Never.

CANDIOTTI: Later at Hernandez's home, Jenkins says Hernandez consoles her.

JENKINS: He asked me if I was OK. Put his hand on my shoulder, kind of rubbed my shoulder and told me he'd been through this death thing before and it will get better with time.

CANDIOTTI: Jenkins says her sister Shayanna, Hernandez's fiancee, was acting secretively while receiving lots of calls and text messages, ultimately getting a coded text message from Hernandez. Shayanna then borrows her sister's car saying she needs to run to the bank.

Prosecutors say Shayanna used the car to throw out a garbage bag suspected of holding that still missing murder weapon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CANDIOTTI: Now, Hernandez has pleaded not guilty and prosecutors are using Shayanna to set up these coded text messages they said that Hernandez sent her. So, we'll see what happens after that -- Erin.

BURNETT: All right. Susan, thank very much.

OUTFRONT now, our legal analyst Paul Callan.

All right. The dismissal of this juror, some people may have laughed thinking dismissed because she's a bigger Patriots fan than she let onto be. But you're saying this is actually significant. It could show how difficult this case will be to prosecute.

PAUL CALLAN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Yes, it's more than that. There were two reasons, one, she lied about how big a fan she was, but she also said something else. That she had formed an opinion that because no murder weapon was recovered that there was no case against Hernandez.

Now, this is the Achilles Heel, the weak point in the prosecution's case, because when they search Hernandez's house, no gun. And ironically, what happens in court today? The sister of Hernandez's fiancee Shayanna testified that her sister goes downstairs with a trash bag and then leaves after getting strange text messages from Hernandez, and she borrows the car and takes off with the trash bag.

Now, she's the fiancee and mother of the child of a $40 million football player. I don't think she's going to be removing too much trash, unless there's something strange in that trash barrel and the gun was in that trash barrel.

BURNETT: That's what they're going to say. But again, this comes down to the circumstantial evidence, which as you pointed in your view is very strong. Four people drive into the forest. Three people come out. A guy reaches into his pocket. Looks like he's pulling out a gun, the gun that he owns matches the gun in the shot. Then, the garbage bag goes out in the middle of the night, someone randomly drives.

All those things make -- but that's still circumstantial, Paul.

CALLAN: Well, it is circumstantial, and this is as strong a circumstantial case as I have ever seen and it's still a problem case, because jurors want to see 100 percent, especially when there's a celebrity on trial and, you know, a circumstantial case they'll say nobody saw him pull the trigger. But if I were arguing, in the summation in this case, I'd say you think there was reasonable doubt with this gun. Reasonable doubt was taken out with the trash by the fiancee of Hernandez on his orders. So, watch for the prosecutor to focus on that, if the trial goes on.

BURNETT: All right. Paul Callan, thank you.

CALLAN: OK.

BURNETT: And next, the latest on Bobbi Kristina Brown's condition. New details tonight about one of the men who found her unconscious, his rap sheet includes weapons, drugs and domestic violence charges.

And Jeanne Moos on how football's worst call ever is turning into the worst call in the history of sport.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: Bobby Brown's attorneys investigating what caused his daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown to be found lying face down in a bathtub, similar to the death of her mother, Whitney Houston. We're also learning more about Max Lomas. He is one of the people who helped rescue the unconscious Bobbi Kristina Brown. He has faced weapon and drug dealing charges. And just a couple of

weeks ago, he was accused of drugging a woman she wouldn't leave him.

OUTFRONT tonight, Harvey Levin, host and executive producer at TMZ, has done a lot of reporting on this.

All right. Harvey, I guess let's start with this Max Lomas, who were just showing, his head shot, his pictures. What do you know about him, his relationship with Bobbi Kristina and her "husband", let me put that in quotes for a moment, Nick Gordon?

HARVEY LEVIN, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, TMZ: Right, that was smart to put that in quotes. Max Lomas is a friend of theirs and he was at the house, and supposedly to resuscitate Bobbi Kristina when she was laying face down in that bathtub on Saturday.

He was arrested two weeks ago, as you said, Erin. The family of this girl who was his girlfriend felt that he had drugged her. When the cops came, they found over five ounces of weed in the house and in addition, they found marijuana grinders, digital scale of a thousand Ziploc bags and obviously the strong evidence that he was dealing drugs, and that's what they charged him with.

This is important because we know that the cops went back a second time and did a search and we are told by the family members of people connected with the family that they found drugs, that's what caused, supposedly told the family that they found drugs at Bobbi Kristina's house. So, all of these dots could connect, and I think it's relevant and cops think it's relevant that Max Lomas has this past.

BURNETT: All right. Of course, can be very relevant, especially when you look at the parallels between Whitney Houston and her daughter. Now, look, Bobby Brown just released a statement, Harvey. I'll quote it. It says, "To correct earlier reports, Bobbi Kristina is not and has never been married to Nick Gordon". Now, I just want to note her, Bobbi Kristina has said on camera that she's married to Nick Gordon. Nick Gordon, of course, her brother. I mean, Whitney Houston brought him in, and basically raised him, not blood brother but they lived in the same house, they grew up together.

What's the significance to Bobby Brown denying that his daughter is married to this guy?

LEVIN: Well, there are -- there are family conflicts going on here, Erin. And part of this is a lot of people in that family don't like Nick Gordon. And they don't want him to have access to Bobbi Kristina and they certainly don't want him to have any kind of inheritance rights, assuming there wasn't a will, and we don't know whether there was or wasn't. So, they are -- they don't like this guy.

And that's why him not being married to her would be relevant. You're right. She has said they were married but they are saying it's not true and we, by the way, have heard that from other people as well.

I will mention quickly there's also some bitterness between Bobby Brown's family and Whitney Houston's family. And that they are not getting along well in this hospital. And Whitney's people are particularly upset with Bobby and his family.

BURNETT: All right. Well, Harvey, thank you very much. Really appreciate it.

LEVIN: OK, Erin.

BURNETT: Harvey knows the most on this issue. All right. Thank you.

And OUTFRONT next, it may be the most famous interception in Super Bowl history or infamous. It really depends on who you're rooting for. Jeanne Moos on what's being called the worst call in the history of life.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: They say it's healthy to forgive and forget, but people are having a hard time letting go of Pete Carroll's goal line play call.

Here's Jeanne Moos.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You think by now we'd be over it. Put the intercepted pass in the past.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The worst call ever.

MOOS: But the putdowns keep spanning ever great periods of history.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That was a most idiotic call in the history of sports.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was the worst play call in the history of life.

MOOS (on camera): This is like an escalating arms race, an arms race of insults.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We single most ludicrous, ridiculous and idiotic play call I've ever, ever seen.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If I live to be 200, I will never see as anything as dumb in my life.

MOOS (voice-over): Adding injury to insult, the Internet. Picturing Seattle coach Pete Carroll manning a drive-through window. Should I just hand this to you or step back five yards and throw it for no reason?

Late night comics joke about the play that wasn't chosen, no handoff to beast mode.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Even though the Patriots won, you really got to hand it to Marshawn Lynch. You really got to hand it.

MOOS: Even Usher chimed? USHER: No beast mode? One yard?

MOOS: ESPN's Keith Olbermann mocked the coach's explanation by comparison.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We decided to call another call.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I personally believe that U.S. Americans --

MOOS: From the historical.

KEITH OLBERMANN, ESPN: Maybe the dumbest play call since coach Robert E. Lee sent his running back George Pickett into the northern defensive line at the Gettysburg bowl in 1863.

MOOS: To the gut.

Coaches getting kicked around, his brain analyzed.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Even great minds can have brain farts.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This was a brain cramp.

MOOS: Win? Nah, I'll pass.

Jeanne Moos, CNN --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am apoplectic.

MOOS: -- New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BURNETT: That's the calmest apoplectic person I've ever seen.

Thanks for joining us. Be sure to set your DVR to record OUTFRONT. You can watch us anytime. We'll see you tomorrow night.

"AC360" begins right now.