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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
Report: Martin Suffered Knuckle Injury; Romney Wins Nebraska and Oregon; Flight Restrictions For F-22 Jets; Medical Report: Zimmerman Had Broken Nose
Aired May 16, 2012 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ZORAIDA SAMBOLIN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you. Welcome to EARLY START. I'm Zoraida Sambolin.
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. I'm Ali Velshi. Ashleigh Banfield is on assignment.
It is 5:00 in the East. Let's get started.
SAMBOLIN: Up first, autopsy results in the death of Trayvon Martin revealed he had injuries to his knuckles. That's according to CNN affiliate WFTV in Orlando.
And also new this morning, we're digging into this, a three-page medical report from the family physician of accused killer George Zimmerman, and it could become a key piece of evidence here, because the day after Martin was shot and killed, Zimmerman visited his doctor. And according to the records, he had a closed fracture of his nose and two black eyes, two lacerations to the back of his head, and a minor back injury as well.
Martin Savidge is joining us live from the CNN Center in Atlanta.
Martin, these developments seem to bolster Zimmerman's argument that he killed Trayvon Martin in self-defense.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that could be argued in two different directions, Zoraida. Of course, the attorney that represents the family of Trayvon Martin is going to say, it doesn't necessarily prove that because what we don't know, despite the medical information that's coming now out of the discovery documents -- and this is all the information that the prosecution is now bringing forward that they have filed and must make available to the defense team.
So, this is why this information is coming out now of the special prosecutor, Angela Curry's office filed this information on Monday. The medical report that shows the bruising on the knuckles, the autopsy report, when it comes to Trayvon Martin, the attorney for Trayvon Martin's family would say, look, Trayvon Martin was in the fight of his life against George Zimmerman, and that's all this autopsy report would seem to reveal.
Ben Crump speaking last night. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN CRUMP, MARTIN FAMILY ATTORNEY (via telephone): Trayvon was fighting for his life.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST: And you're saying that's why he would have injuries on his hands?
CRUMP: Absolutely. He was standing his ground. It was self- defense. If somebody got a gun, I want to fight for my life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: So there you hear from Ben Crump, the attorney that represents Trayvon Martin's family. They don't necessarily say that the autopsy reports of the injuries on his hands are in any way an indication as to who started this altercation. And that's going to be key in a courtroom.
SAMBOLIN: Martin, as we talk about this autopsy report, do we have any other details? Because at issue here, a lot of people are questioning, you know, the bullet wound. How did it enter? Was it from the back? Was it from the front? Do we know anything else about the details in the autopsy report?
SAVIDGE: Not yet. All that we know -- and this actually came out from the original hearings held a couple of weeks ago, is that that bullet was fired, and it was a single shot, fired at very close range. The indication coming from that hearing that it appeared that the weapon was either pressed against Trayvon Martin or just an inch or so away from Trayvon Martin. Now that would seem to support the argument from George Zimmerman that they are, in fact, in the struggle of their lives.
But, again, it doesn't tell us who started it, and that will, of course, be vital in a courtroom.
SAMBOLIN: What were some of these other injuries sustained by George Zimmerman that we're learning about?
SAVIDGE: This is all coming, of course, when he went to the family doctor the day after the shooting incident. So what is pointed out is that he had what was called a closed fracture of his nose. He had two black eyes. He had an injury to his back, and, of course, he had the lacerations on the back of his head.
Again, the Martin family's attorney would point out he didn't go to the hospital and he didn't have a concussion, which, again, if George Zimmerman is saying his head is being beaten against the ground, that he's in fear of blacking out and losing his life, well, the injuries to the back of his head don't necessarily bear that out.
This is going to come down to an argument of the experts when we get into a courtroom.
SAMBOLIN: And really, at the end of the day, exactly what you said earlier. That is, who instigated the fight?
Martin Savidge live for us in Atlanta -- thank you.
SAVIDGE: You're welcome.
VELSHI: The Transportation Security Administration, the TSA, doesn't seem to get it. That sums up a new report from the Department of Homeland Security's inspector general. It says the TSA is failing to adequately report, track, and fix security breaches at U.S. airports, like this one at Newark Liberty International airport where a man slipped into a secure area to kiss his girlfriend good-bye. That's a breach that shut the airport down for hours and delayed thousands of passengers.
Homeland Security finds that only 42 percent of breaches are being reported to the TSA and the problems are being corrected only 53 percent of the time. We're going to find out much more about this interesting report and the breaches and the impact they have on you when we're joined by CNN aviation correspondent Lizzie O'Leary at 6:30 a.m. Eastern.
A massive manhunt is on for the husband of a bride found stabbed to death in her bathtub. Police in Burbank, Illinois, right outside Chicago, are looking for 34-year-old Arnoldo Jimenez. Jimenez was last seen driving a black 2006 Maserati after the wedding reception early Saturday. His wife, 26-year-old Estrella Carrera, was found stabbed to death on Sunday still wearing her dress from the reception. Jimenez is wanted on a first degree murder warrant.
VELSHI: On a story we've been following, a Georgia woman fighting for her life after contracting a rare flesh eating bacteria. This has been ravaging 24-year-old Aimee Copeland's body since a zip line accident two weeks ago. Her leg and part of her abdomen had to be amputated.
But Aimee's father told CNN's Erin Burnett that her progress is nothing short of miraculous.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDY COPELAND, DAUGHTER BATTLING FLESH-EATING BACTERIA: Doctors have been baffled. I understand one of the doctors went by, looked at her charts, and examined the vital signs and says, you know, this just doesn't make any sense. But we know it does make sense because we believe in miracles, and Aimee is our miracle child.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: The strength of the human spirit there. Andy Copeland says doctors expect a, quote, roller coaster of highs and lows in Aimee's recovery.
SAMBOLIN: And later this evening, we could be witnessing the final hours of John Edwards' corruption trial, and the former senator's attorneys still won't say if he will be ask to testify. And his daughter Cate is still expected to testify this morning, and the defense is still considering Edwards' former mistress Rielle Hunter to the stand. Edwards faces up to 30 years behind bars for allegedly using illegal campaign contributions to cover up his affair with Hunter.
The mother of a mentally ill homeless man who died after a police beating has accepted a $1 million settlement from the city of Fullerton, California. Two of the officers who were seen repeatedly hitting 37-year-old Kelly Thomas face charges ranging from second degree murder to involuntary manslaughter. The beating was caught on tape.
SAMBOLIN: Did you hear about this? A panel of FDA advisers giving unanimous approval to an at home HIV test that can be sold over the counter. They say the test is safe and it's effective and the projected benefits far outweigh the potential risks of false positive and false negative results. Federal health officials say 20 percent of the estimated 1.2 million Americans living with HIV don't even know they're infected, and they risk spreading the virus.
VELSHI: And that's a big deal, the idea that you can skip the stigma and just get the test.
SAMBOLIN: But the problem is the psychological effect of getting a positive result, right?
VELSHI: That comes up in a lot of cases where the good outweighs the bad.
SAMBOLIN: Yes.
VELSHI: All right. Listen to this. A dashboard camera puts you in the driver's seat for a terrifying ride. See what one couple saw when they say their car suddenly accelerated and then crashed.
We'll have that after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: OK. This could be a smoking gun for sudden acceleration.
(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)
VELSHI: All right. So first of all, that's not a video game. That's not a simulation. If you had trouble understanding it, that's OK because it was in Korean.
Korean officials are investigating this video which may show evidence that a car took off for no particular reason, peeling off at 80 miles an hour, before a crash you'll see in a moment that injured 17 people, including the two people in the car, who are a couple in their 60s.
The couple's son claims he extracted the video -- this is the interesting part -- from a black box data recorder in the Hyundai, the kind that you see in planes. A couple of weeks ago, Hyundai announced that all its cars are now manufactured with brake override systems which are designed to stop sudden acceleration.
SAMBOLIN: Since the crash or before?
VELSHI: That's unclear to me.
SAMBOLIN: I didn't know they existed. I though that it was just a fascinating story. Love to understand what they were saying.
VELSHI: Yes, and whoever was driving that car, it's impressive they managed to keep it from crashing for that long. That felt like being in a video game or a simulator.
SAMBOLIN: Yes.
VELSHI: Doesn't feel normal.
SAMBOLIN: All right. Twelve minutes past the hour. Let's get up to date.
Here's Christine Romans.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning you two.
Huge developments in the Trayvon Martin death case. CNN affiliate WFTV reporting this morning an autopsy report shows the 17- year-old had injuries to his knuckles. And according to a medical report compiled by Zimmerman's family physician, Zimmerman had a, quote, "closed fracture of his nose, two black eyes, two lacerations to the back of his head, and a minor back injury."
The report could be introduced as evidence in Zimmerman's murder trial. It appears to bolster his claim that he killed Martin in self- defense.
But the Martin family attorney told our Anderson Cooper Trayvon's injuries show the teen was fighting for his life.
Not much mystery in the Oregon and Nebraska primaries. Mitt Romney capturing both contests easily with more than 70 percent of the vote in each state last night. You can expect to hear a lot about the economy in the coming weeks from the former Massachusetts governor. The Romney camp planning to hammer President Obama over the deficit.
If you follow the polls, it's sure hard to tell whether Barack Obama or Mitt Romney is more popular among women voters. The latest CBS/"New York Times" poll triggered quite a buzz, as you know, yesterday when it revealed that Romney had passed the president with a two-point edge among women.
But take a look at the latest Gallup poll, tells a very different story, with the president holding a nine-point lead of over Romney among women. And that's why they hold elections and that's why we take polls until the very end, right?
Take a hole this giant gorge that keeps growing deeper and wider in a suburban Houston neighborhood. It's big enough to swallow a home. People are being warned to stay away from it. Homeowners are keeping a close eye on it. Police are keeping a close eye.
The problem was caused by a damaged drain pipe following a storm last week.
He can play. A 13-year-old boy who was banned from playing on the varsity girls field hockey team for being too good, by the way, is now allowed back on the field. The athletics committee at Southampton High School on Long Island reversing its decision. We spoke to this young man last month. He sharpened his field hockey skills where he grew up in Dublin, Ireland.
The school had ruled the 4'8", 82 pound boy, smaller than most of the girls on the team, posed a threat to the much older girls on the field.
If you're leaving the house right now, you can watch us any time on your desktop or your mobile phone. You go to CNN.com/TV, Ali.
VELSHI: You threaten me.
ROMANS: And we get to play on the same team, right?
VELSHI: Exactly right. Hey, by the way, one of the guys on the floor was asking about the closed fracture.
ROMANS: I don't know what that means.
VELSHI: I looked it up. This is rudimentary, but it appears a closed fracture is when the skin isn't broken. There can be a fracture with the skin being broken. An open fracture is referred to when there's a break in the skin and the fracture.
Again, we got experts on this -- I'm just giving you my rudimentary initial analysis.
Christine, thanks so much.
ROMANS: Great. You're welcome.
VELSHI: A dreary start here in the Northeast. It really was. It could affect your travel plans today.
Rob Marciano, my friend, has your weather update.
Good morning, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Ali.
A city you know pretty well, Philadelphia got hit pretty hard last night or a couple of hours ago, with some heavy rain and some thunderstorms that spawned a little flooding around town. That now over the New York City area. A little weaker but nonetheless rainfall from New York back through, say, Hoboken, Hackensack, and maybe back to New York as well, getting up towards Bridgeport, eventually to New Haven.
This is just the first pulse of several that will come through the day. If it's not raining where you are this morning, especially near the coastline, you've got a decent amount of fog from Boston, all the way back down to Philadelphia. So that will slow down some travel on the roadways and at the airports.
New York metro is included. Philly, of course, Boston included as well. Later on today, once the cold front starts to push through, Upstate New York, northern New England, and especially Vermont and western parts of New Hampshire, including the Berkshires of western Mass, you could see severe weather of hail and damaging winds, as this front comes through.
Across the desert northwest, not good news for the folks fighting the fires across parts of Arizona. Just north of Phoenix, this is the gladiator fire shot yesterday -- only 5 percent containment there. About four fires right now across parts of Arizona.
At best, those fires at 35 percent containment and over 12,000 acres burned. Today's highs will be well up over 100 degrees. And in the next couple of days, the winds start to pick up and gets more treacherous there.
And rain on and off, muggy today with fog included, eventually a high temperature of 79 up there in New York.
Ali, back up to you.
SAMBOLIN: Rob, do you know where Skellytown is?
MARCIANO: Give me a state.
SAMBOLIN: No, then it would be no fun.
VELSHI: That's fun. Stump the weather guy.
MARCIANO: I do not, no.
SAMBOLIN: I'm putting you on the spot. Listen to this next story. It's kind of kooky crazy. Thanks for the weather report.
It is 16 minutes past the hour here. Time for your "Early Reads".
A registered sex offender wins a city council seat in a small Texas town. It's 60 miles east of Amarillo. Our affiliate KFDA reports Warren "|Red" Mills used to be the mayor of Skellytown, but he was forced to resign when residents learned of his past. Mills served jail time for sexual contact without consent and probation for allegations of sexual contact with two minors.
But in the city council election, mills received the most votes. He'll be sworn in later this month.
VELSHI: All right.
An openly gay prosecutor has been rejected to serve as a judge in Virginia. "The Richmond Times Dispatch" is reporting that conservative Republicans in the state house blocked prosecutor Tracy Thorne-Beglin from the judgeship.
Conservatives argue that Thorne-Beglin's sexuality and support of gay marriage would influence his judicial decisions. They also charge that Thorne-Beglin, who was a former Navy fighter pilot, violated the military's now defunct "don't ask, don't tell" policy by coming out publicly 20 years ago.
SAMBOLIN: So, if you're hoping the Google glasses would turn your life into a scene from the "Terminator" movie like this one.
(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)
SAMBOLIN: I was. Sorry, looks like you're going to have to wait for that technology.
CNET paid a visit to Google and found Google's initial promo video may have exaggerated a wee bit the way the information would be displayed on the Google glasses. Instead of Terminator style full view overlay, the current prototype for the glasses will display information just slightly above your eye. A company spokesperson says it's too early to know all of the functions the glasses will have but did say photo sharing will be an option. Kind of falls where an umbrella would fall is what they're saying.
VELSHI: I'm just hoping my Pilates from last night will help me look like Arnold Schwarzenegger a little bit. My first class.
SAMBOLIN: And your last?
VELSHI: I'm a little sore. For an expanded look at the top stories, head to our blog, CNN.com/EarlyStart.
SAMBOLIN: And Facebook questions of diversity today. You might be surprised who is not represented in the board room. Perhaps you won't be so surprised.
We're going to tell you after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAMBOLIN: Twenty-two minutes past the hour. We are having entirely too much fun this morning. We hope you are as well.
VELSHI: You have to watch in between the commercial extras. It's a lot of fun. We're describing our different belly buttons.
(LAUGHTER)
SAMBOLIN: Could you explain the whole thing then.
VELSHI: I was about to, and the producer got in my ear and said the viewers do not want to know that you think your belly button is like an underinflated basketball with hair.
SAMBOLIN: Good morning, everyone. OK. I didn't mean that.
VELSHI: Right over to Christine.
SAMBOLIN: We're going to talk about Facebook. This is all the dialogue has happening around the newsroom.
ROMANS: I want to talk about Facebook because every day has a new kind of iteration of what's Facebook going to do, what does it have to prove.
And there's a lot of talk this morning about how this company is going to have to diversify its board of directors before and after it goes public. Right now, there are seven men on that board, all very well-established people. These are people that Mark Zuckerberg, you know, called in to advise him as this company was growing and developing.
There are a lot of calls for there to be a woman and for there to be minorities on this board. I want you to listen to something that Rachel Sklar told me a couple of days ago. She's the founder of Change the Ratio. She's pushing to get more women in tech and new media.
(BEGIN VIDEO LCIP)
RACHEL SKLAR, FOUNDER, CHANGE THE RATIO: There's a movement now that Facebook has become a public company to have a woman, added to the board. Fifty-five percent of Facebook's users are women, and the liking activity that's generating all this interest is actually more than 60 percent generated by women.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: The growth in users is among women. The growth in liking activity is among women. You would think that Facebook would want to have a woman there on its board.
Now, it does have Sheryl Sandberg, its not so secret weapon.
VELSHI: One of the most powerful women in the company.
ROMANS: Right. She's the COO, the chief operating officer. She's the one that's been front and center as they've been try to sell this stock to the public.
So, keep in mind, one of the most recognizable and powerful women in tech is running this company. But some ask, why isn't she on the board already, or will she be after this?
Now, another big development in the story about Facebook is this news that G.M. is not going to do a $10 million ad buy anymore there. It just wasn't seeing people buying cars and clicking on its ads on Facebook.
This, I think, highlights an issue for Facebook. How do they make money for their ads if they don't have the big traditional media buys who want to do things?
And Ford likes the liking ability, they like the fan pages, they like to use Facebook to get their brand out there. But the traditional big money media buys, what does that mean?
So, for mobile and for ads and actually the real clickability and selling things through ads, that's an interesting development as it tries to go public.
VELSHI: And, remember, for most media in this country, the auto sector is the single biggest client.
ROMANS: Oh, yes.
VELSHI: Biggest buyers.
ROMANS: -- young people and women who are online, when you G.M. gets brand loyalty in one of its brands, that's why it's such an attractive place to do business for them. But G.M. won't be.
SAMBOLIN: I suspect they'll evolve, as they figure it out, right?
ROMANS: Yes, absolutely. Evolving. And that's the IPO, remember, this is just the beginning of the public phase of this company. It's the beginning of an evolution for Facebook.
VELSHI: Christine, thank you.
ROMANS: You're welcome.
VELSHI: All right. It's the -- it's might be the ultimate military fighting machine, but you can't fly too far in one of these jets. Why the Pentagon has been forced to place tight new restrictions on its most sophisticated fighter plane.
We'll tell you about that after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: Welcome back to EARLY START. I'm Ali Velshi, in for Ashleigh Banfield.
SAMBOLIN: And I'm Zoraida Sambolin.
Here's what's happening at half past the hour.
Up first, CNN affiliate WFTV in Orlando reporting autopsy report in the death of Trayvon Martin revealed that he had injuries to his knuckles. And according to a medical report compiled by George Zimmerman's family physician, the accused murderer had a closed fracture to his nose, two black eyes, two lacerations to the back of his head, and a minor back injury that was one day after the shooting. VELSHI (voice-over): Police in Illinois are on the hunt for man wanted on a first-degree murder warrant in a stabbing death of his new bride. Twenty-six-year-old Estrella Carrera (ph) was found death in her bathtub still wearing her dress from the wedding reception. The groom, 30-year-old Arnaldo Jimenez (ph) is at large. He was last seen driving a 2006 black Maserati.
SAMBOLIN: A rapid ad home test for HIV is a step closer to reality now. An FDA Advisory Committee giving its unanimous recommendation for the Orsaquick (ph) HIV test to be sold over the counter. They're saying it is safe, it's effective, and the benefits outweigh the risks.
VELSHI: All right. Today, concerns over pilots getting sick while flying the U.S. military's most sophisticated jet. The F-22 raptor has led the Pentagon to put a tight leash on the plane. The F- 22 raptor now must remain within proximity of potential landing locations in case a pilot gets dizzy, lightheaded, and nauseated and needs to put the plane down fast.
Officials at the Pentagon said yesterday that defense secretary, Leon Panetta, wants to put safety first.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE LITTLE, ACTING ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: Secretary Panetta believes the department must do everything possible to ensure pilot safety and minimize flight risks. He will continue to closely monitor the air force's efforts to enhance the safety of this very important aircraft.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: OK. So, what's this about? This comes after pilots have come forward claiming that flying this plane is causing health problems. The air force grounded the plane in May of 2011 over similar concerns, but the F-22 was reinstated four months later.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VELSHI (on-camera): Brian Everstine is the writer for "The Air Force Times." He's been covering the story from the start, joins me now from Washington. Brian, good morning to you. Thank you for being with us. First of all, let's just be clear on what the problem is.
This is a highly sophisticated, highly maneuverable, probably one of the finest planes out there, but the pilots are claiming symptoms of hypoxia, which is a shortage of oxygen, and claiming that it's disorienting them?
BRIAN EVERSTINE, STAFF WRITER, AIR FORCE TIMES: Yes, that's correct. There've been two pilots who come forward. And, now, (INAUDIBLE) whistleblower status to say that they do have concerns about the safety of the jet.
And, as we learned yesterday from Senator Warner of Virginia that that number has now gone to nine, including a couple of flight surgeons who have come forward to express their concerns about the jet.
VELSHI: OK. Here's what confused me. Some mechanics, who don't fly the plane but were involved in testing it, claim the same symptoms while being on the ground. That's puzzling because hypoxia typically happens at a high altitude where the air is thinning. You're not getting proper pressurized oxygen.
EVERSTINE: Yes. There've been -- there were five ground maintainers who experienced similar symptoms during ground engine runs (INAUDIBLE) air wall, getting the raptor ready to fly. And, air force investigation is trying to identify a root cause for those five incidents as well.
VELSHI: Brian, this is a very sophisticated, very expensive plane that seems to do everything else well, but it's had a number of incidents and possibly two fatalities related to this. It does strike me that the air intake and the pressurization system is not the most sophisticated part of the fighter jet. Why is it taking so long to get to the bottom of this?
EVERSTINE: That's the air force's question as well. They've put their best minds together. They have put some minds from NASA and the navy as well working to identify a root cause and what is causing these sort of problems in this jet.
VELSHI: What's your best guess at this? I know you're not an aviator, but, you know, given what you've studied and what you've heard, what is the mechanics that may be causing this problem?
EVERSTINE: That's the question. That's the question we're trying to get it. That's the question of the air force trying to get at with their study. And, so far, no root cause has come forward.
VELSHI: All right. So, the important part here is that there were some pilots who said that in complaining about this and saying that they didn't want to fly the planes, they were feeling that there might be repercussions. The air force has now come out and said no pilot who flies this plane, who doesn't want to fly it or complains of problems or mechanics who complain of problems are going to be penalized.
EVERSTINE: Yes, that's correct. Air force general came and told Congress that they're treating anyone who comes forward as a whistleblower and that there will not be any repercussions toward them.
VELSHI: All right. So, what are we -- they're keeping these planes close to the ground. As you said, they're bringing the navy in, they're bringing NASA in to look at this. They've got a task force looking at it, and they're going to -- Leon Panetta has said something about sort of putting stuff into it and fixing these planes one at a time, I guess, four per month until next year?
EVERSTINE: I've not heard that exact statistic. VELSHI: All right. So we're going to -- we still don't know when this problem is going to be solved and when these planes are going to be back and operational. Just to be clear, they've never been used in any real mission.
EVERSTINE: No. They have been -- a few have been deployed to Southwest Asia within the past few weeks.
VELSHI: All right. Brian, thank you very much for being with us. Good to talk to you. Brian Everstine is a staff writer with "Air Force Times."
EVERSTINE: Thank you.
VELSHI: Seven o'clock -- at seven o'clock eastern on "Starting Point," we'll ask Illinois congressman, Adam Kinzinger, about the restrictions being placed on the F-22s and whether they go far enough. Kinzinger is a pilot in the air national guard. He's been very vocal about the problems with the F-22.
SAMBOLIN: Thirty-five minutes past the hour.
Newark, New Jersey mayor, Cory Booker, that is, known for shoveling people out of blizzards and pulling people out of burning buildings. And Governor Chris Christie, apparently, is jealous because of all that. The governor's office producing a web video that poke fun at the mayor's superhero status with the governor channeling Seinfeld. Check it out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Governor.
GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE, (R) NEW JERSEY: you guys have any problems you want me to handle like a fire anywhere, people trapped?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
CHRISTIE: Like a bad automobile accident where you need me to help some folks?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nothing like that.
CHRISTIE: Maybe a cat in the tree?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I think we're all set here.
MAYOR CORY BOOKER, (R) NEW JERSEY: Trooper, what have we got?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mayor, thank you for coming. There's a two alarm fire down on state street. We do have a car broken down on route 1, and yes, a little girl has lost her cat in a tree.
BOOKER: As you were. Governor, I got this.
CHRISTIE: Booker. (END VIDEO CLIP)
SAMBOLIN: That's just an excerpt. There is so much more. I'm going to send out a link on Twitter.
VELSHI: Those two guys are funny. I mean, if you're in New Jersey, if you're in Newark, you've got Cory Booker as your mayor, you've got Chris Christie as a governor, and they are two guys who tend to be quite entertaining when there's a camera or crowd around them.
All right. Twenty million more Americans are about to become addicts. We're going to tell you how and why. It is very interesting story after the break.
SAMBOLIN: Parents, in particular, beware.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAMBOLIN: Welcome back. It is 39 minutes past the hour. Good morning to you, New York. It is now 58 degrees. Very hazy out there, tough driving conditions. A little bit later, 72 degrees, and we're going to continue with the rain and the thunderstorms.
And, we could see the number of college students considered alcoholics actually hit 40 percent, but not because more kids are drinking heavily. It is because what defines an alcoholic may be changing now. CNN's Alina Cho Is here with this story. This is quite a talker.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is. It's really remarkable, Zoraida, if you think about it. Good morning. Good morning, everybody. Psychiatrists and specialists are literally redefining the term alcoholic. And if you've ever woken up from a blackout in college, guess what? You are one under new guidelines due to be released exactly a year from now, and you're not alone.
In fact, 20 million more Americans could be diagnosed as having some sort of addiction. That's 60 percent of the country, whether it's drugs or alcohol, or listen to this, even shopping or gambling. The new guidelines are included in a revision of the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders or DSM.
And if you haven't heard of it, it's important. It's the nation's arbiter of mental illness, the so-called psychiatric bible. Now, here's what you need to know. Apparently, there are two ways of categorizing drug and alcohol problems. There's substance abuse. Everybody's heard of that. Now, that refers to a short-term problem that includes binge drinking in college.
And then, there's something called substance dependence, meaning a long-term problem like alcoholism. Under the new guidelines, there is only one diagnosis for addiction but with varying degrees, mild, moderate, or severe. Now, big reason why more will be diagnosed?
Doctors are adding to the list of symptoms of addiction while, at the same time, reducing the number of symptoms that are needed for a diagnosis, which could mean millions more people could be labeled addicts even without picking up another drink.
Now, what's more, for the first time, the manual would also include gambling as an addiction and could include a category called behavioral addiction, which is so broad that some doctors fear that just about anyone could be labeled an addict in any category, whether it's shopping or sex, internet, or video games. So, why is this all so important?
Well, for a variety of reasons, but largely because this is the standard that the government embraces, and it also dictates whether health insurance like Medicare or Medicaid will pay for treatment. So, if you think about it, more people, as much as 20 million more people are going to be diagnosed. That could be potentially 20 million more people who need to be treated.
SAMBOLIN: No. Absolutely --
CHO: And that's a lot of money.
SAMBOLIN: Yes.
CHO: That's right.
SAMBOLIN: And the labeling and the stigma. I mean, there are just so many more layers to this. Can we talk about the pros and the cons here?
CHO: Well, you know, obviously, there are at least two sides to this issue, Zoraida.
SAMBOLIN: Yes.
CHO: You know, supporters say that untreated illness, obviously, a big problem, and with the expanded definition of addiction, this will ensure that more people who are actually sick will get diagnosed and get the help that they need.
Opponents on the other side argue that this will artificially inflate the number of people categorized as addicts and ultimately cause hundreds of millions of dollars in what could be unnecessary treatment.
So, the people who are proponents of this saying, people will get treated early. The other people are saying on the other side, this will create false epidemics and the medicalization of everyday behavior. But it will be interesting to see. You know, they've got a year from now. A 162 experts are actually rewriting the manual.
A year from now, it will come out. We'll have to see what the final product is. But in the meantime, a lot of people are talking about it.
SAMBOLIN: No. Definitely. It's quite the talker. You know, I worry about the stigma behind it. And a lot of kids drink a lot in college.
CHO: They sure do.
SAMBOLIN: I mean, it is kind of good to be able to identify if there's a problem, but at what point do you identify a problem?
CHO: That's right. Well, that's right. Where do you draw the line? And that's the big question that people are debating.
SAMBOLIN: All right. Well, thank you for pointing this all out to us. We appreciate it. Alina Cho. Ali, back to you.
VELSHI: Thank you, Zoraida. Great conversation. It is 5:44 in the east. Forty-four minutes after the hour. Time to get your update from Christine Romans. Good morning, Christine.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning again, Ali.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS (voice-over): According to a report compiled by his family physician, George Zimmerman had a closed fracture of his nose, two black eyes, two lacerations to the back of his head, and a minor back injury one day after shooting Trayvon Martin's death.
The report could be introduced as evidence in Zimmerman's murder trial. It appears to bolster his claim that he killed the unarmed teen in self-defense.
A Norwegian man sets himself on fire and tries to break into the trial of admitted mass murderer, Anders Breivik. Witnesses say the man shouted "shoot me" as he was tackled by police. He was taken to the hospital suffering serious injuries to his torso. Police say they don't know what his motive is. Breivik is on trial for the massacre of 77 people last July.
A New York judge rescinded the restraining order against this woman, Alec Baldwin's accused stalker for another two months. Forty- year-old Genevieve Sabourin, a one-time actress. She was arrested outside Baldwin's New York City home last month. She's accused of hounding him with e-mails and texts. The two met on set a few years ago. She was booked on five misdemeanor counts of harassment and stalking.
Oh, and this story, heartbreaking. A gruesome, gruesome crime scene in Port St. John, Florida. Police say a mother fatally shot her four children, ages 12 to 17, then she took her own life. Three of those kids had gone to the neighbor's house for help, but they were called back to the home by their mother. Once inside, police say she shot and killed them all.
There's no cure for Alzheimer's disease, but can it be prevented? Federal health officials announcing a drug trial aimed at stopping this brain wasting disease before it starts. It will focus on people at very high risk for developing Alzheimer's but who have yet to show any symptoms.
The Obama administration says its goal is to wipe out Alzheimer's by 2025. More than five million Americans suffer from Alzheimer's disease.
Plane carrying the new president of France gets struck by lightning. No one was hurt, but the jet was forced to turn back to Paris. President Francois Hollande was on his way to Berlin to meet with German chancellor, Angela Merkel. He boarded a second flight. His first words to his new partner in the crisis, I'm sorry for being late.
Actress, Hilary Swank, is suing an entertainment company for using pictures of her without permission. The lawsuits claims the company called Roberts Home Audio and Video used photos of Swank from the film, "Million Dollar Baby" in one of its ad campaigns. Swank claims the California company violated her right of privacy. She is seeking unspecified damages.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS (on-camera): All right. The one thing you need to know today about your money. Home affordability. New numbers show home affordability is better than it has ever been. The relentless decline in home prices also appears to be slowing. Mortgage rates are at record lows again.
Follow me on Twitter and Facebook for a link to a CNNMoney calculator for how much house you can afford, Zoraida, if this is maybe the time for to you get into real estate.
SAMBOLIN: You know, I'm actually thinking about that, Christine.
ROMANS: Are you?
SAMBOLIN: Yes.
VELSHI: What a timely discussion.
ROMANS: I will send you my calculator.
SAMBOLIN: Please do that because I am curious about that. A little confuse, so thank you very much.
ROMANS: You're welcome.
SAMBOLIN: Forty-seven minutes past the hour. Listen to this, he tripped and landed on his chainsaw, neck first, and he is actually alive to talk about it today
VELSHI: No way!
SAMBOLIN: Aha. An arborist named Kevin Murphy says he was cutting down brush along the road in Pennsylvania last month when he slipped, and he -- oh, my goodness, he landed on a chainsaw. You see that right there. That's quite a scar he has. Doctors told Murphy he came just centimeters away from hitting a major vein or artery and losing his life. Not only did he live to tell about it, he's joking about it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEVIN MURPHY, ARBORIST, NECK CUT BY CHAINSAW: A guy I worked with for a long time, he called me cutthroat Kevin and Pez dispenser. My sister is saying I put bolts in my neck, you know, I look like Frankenstein. It wasn't my time, honestly. It should have been in all reason. That chainsaw should have just took me out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAMBOLIN: How many of you believe that, right? It just wasn't his time, he believes. Isn't that something?
VELSHI: I do think he thinks it's funny that he gets called Pez dispenser and cutthroat Kevin.
SAMBOLIN: All right. So, that wound took more than 80 stitches to actually close it up. And it happened, listen to this, on his 49th birthday.
VELSHI: Well, right. So, you don't have to do anything good for any of his other birthdays because nothing's going to top saving -- having your neck cut by a chainsaw.
SAMBOLIN: Oh, my goodness.
VELSHI: Usually, it's the kids pulling a prank on their teachers. Not this time. How the teachers got the last laugh. This is funny. After the break.
SAMBOLIN: And listen up, folks, if you are leaving the house right now, you can watch us any time. Take us with you. We'll be on your desktop or on your mobile phone. Just go to CNN.com/TV.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAMBOLIN: We got lots of cool things for you today. Fifty-one minutes past the hour. It's time to look at what is trending this morning.
To no man (ph) to the remorseless eating machine. 6'6", 350- pound Bill Wisth is the real life Homer Simpson. He is protesting outside, that place right there, Chuck's Place. It's a restaurant that offers an all-you-can-eat fish fry.
He's accusing the place of false advertising because the staff cut him off after he packed away a dozen pieces of fish, just a dozen, and a few of those plastic lobsters on the wall, we understand.
(CROSSTALK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BILL WISTH DIDN'T HAVE ALL HE COULD EAT: We asked for more fish, and they refused to give us any more fish. I think that people have to stand up for consumers.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAMBOLIN: I love this. He's really serious. The restaurant says they were running out of fish and patience, and The Bill has been a problem customer, that's what they're calling him, and has a tab that he has not paid off. They still say that they sent him home with a take-out bag filled with eight more pieces of fish.
VELSHI: The mystery unsolved. All right. Teachers busting a move in a high school prank that turned the tables on their students.
SAMBOLIN: Love this.
VELSHI: They asked kids at Abby Kelley Foster Charter School in Massachusetts to tape student interviews. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: So, they're dance bombing the students while they're taping these interviews to the tune of Whitney Houston's "I Want to Dance with Somebody." And most of the kids said they had no clue what was going on behind them.
SAMBOLIN: That's somebody's father in the background --
(LAUGHTER)
SAMBOLIN: You know?
VELSHI: Very, very funny.
SAMBOLIN: It is funny. I'd love to talk to the students after they watched this video.
(LAUGHTER)
SAMBOLIN: And how lazy can we get? We're going to show you this lazy. This is the latest compact Honda. It's called the Uni-Cab. It's a personal mobility device which --
VELSHI: Which use to use your light --
SAMBOLIN: Yes, exactly. It's sort of like an electric mobile office chair or mini-segue that moves in all directions. Some joking that it looks like Wall-E's girlfriend. It's not available to the public yet. So, we don't have a price tag on that.
VELSHI: What's the point? SAMBOLIN: Well, here's my problem with here. We have an obesity epidemic, right?
VELSHI: Right. Right.
SAMBOLIN: And this is what we're working on.
VELSHI: That just doesn't sound right. I like the fact that in the promotional videos, we're all slim people. But, yes, no, I'm not sure that makes a lot of sense.
All right. Sacha Baron Cohen's new film "The Dictator" arrives today. It's today. All right. He's been everywhere promoting it, including of his last night in character, of course, to Jon Stewart.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JON STEWART, HOST, "THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART": It's been a difficult year for you. Let's not mince words. Let's not lie. You've lost Kim Jong-Il, dead. Gadhafi, dead. Osama Bin Laden, dead. Who do you play cards with now? Who do you play bridge with now with those gentlemen gone?
SACHA BARON COHEN, COMEDIAN: Rick Santorum.
(LAUGHTER)
COHEN: You know, I like him despite his liberal views.
(LAUGHTER)
COHEN: But you are right. All the big dictators are gone, Gadhafi, Kim Jong, Hussein, Jamie (ph). You know, I lost these friends. I miss them. Gadhafi, I miss you. Sorry. I mean, Gadhafi, I miss you.
(LAUGHTER)
COHEN: I don't have a nuclear weapon, wink, wink. I am winking, which means that I am lying.
(LAUGHTER)
COHEN: The one you should be careful of is North Korea. They are just years away from developing a boat capable of reaching Japan.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: You may have seen that before, but they reran that last night, because the movie is coming out. That was interesting with the two security guards behind him as well.
SAMBOLIN: Totally in character.
VELSHI: Yes.
SAMBOLIN: All right. Fifty-five minutes past the hour. New evidence revealed in the Trayvon Martin shooting case. Why some say it is proof that Martin was in a fight for his life the night that he gunned down Trayvon Martin. All these details after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
