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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Investigation into Shooting Continues; Airline Gun Smuggling Operation Busted; Travel Trouble; New Year's Raise; Internet Back in North Korea; Cuba Signals It Won't Return Fugitives

Aired December 23, 2014 - 05:30   ET

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

CHRISTIEN ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: De Blasio urging New Yorkers and the media to focus on supporting the officers' families. But some activists said they will not heed the mayor's call to suspend protests. They will hold a police reform demonstration this afternoon in Harlem.

CNN's Don Lemon has the latest -- Don.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DON LEMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Christine, Mayor Bill de Blasio pushed back at critics who say he contributed to an anti-police atmosphere that got Officers Ramos and Liu killed. The mayor said that the head of the police union who said De Blasio had blood on his hands was wrong and mistaken.

The mayor also called for calm and civility, and said he respected the right of the 35,000 sworn officers of the NYPD to have lots of different opinions. Police Commissioner Bill Bratton supported the mayor on that point saying, quote, "Can you point out to me one mayor that has not been battling with the police union in last 50 years?"

The investigation continues even though Ismaaiyl Brinsley is dead because officials say families have a right to know. There is new surveillance video to report just released from a shopping area in Brooklyn not far from the scene about three hours before the shooting took place.

Authorities want to find out what Brinsley was doing in that time before the shooting to make sure there were no other accomplices. They are asking the public for help and we are hearing from one of the widows of the officers killed in the attack. She spoke about her personal loss and the loss of the Ramos family.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PEI XIA CHEN, OFFICER LIU'S WIDOW: We would also like to express our condolence to the officer's family. This is a difficult time for both of our families, but we will stand together and get through this together. Thank you.

(END VIDEO CLIP) LEMON: As far as the services for the officers, the funeral services for Officer Ramos will be on Saturday. The Liu family is waiting on family from China to make their arrangements -- Christine.

ROMANS: It's just so sad. New threats facing New York City police officers. New threats on top of all that grief, the NYPD investigating more than 15 new threats against officers posted on various social media platforms.

Detectives tried to sort through which ones if any are serious and credible. You remember the shooter has posted threats against police officers on social media. Because of these threats to officers, the department plans to increase security around the Times Square ball drop that happens this New Year's eve.

The sister and aunt of the gunman who shot the NYPD officers are now speaking out. Ismaaiyl Brinsley, who shot himself as police closed in, and his family members say they are grieving for themselves and for the families of the dead police officers.

And they insist that despite Brinsley's tirades on social media, the shootings stem from his emotional troubles, not a political motive.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JALAA'A BRINSLEY, GUNMAN'S SISTER: I feel badly for the families. We give our condolences to the families. We are grieving and we are very sorry. This has nothing to do with police retaliation. This was a troubled, emotionally troubled kid. He needed help. He didn't get it.

If he got arrested this many times, why won't they give him help? They kept releasing him into the streets. Isn't that a problem, which is a justice system problem and they should be asking? Not us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Brinkley's family says he leaves behind two children, an infant and a 5-year-old.

In Milwaukee, more protests against police violence after the district attorney there decides not to charge a white police officer in the death of a mentally ill black man. The federal government is now looking into this case and our national correspondent, George Howell, is there in Milwaukee with more.

GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A group of protesters have gathered in downtown Milwaukee. I want to show you the group at Red Arrow Park. All of this is in response to a prosecuting attorney's decision not to charge a police officer for fatally shooting a mentally ill man more than a dozen times.

This happened back in April when Officer Christopher Manney confronted Dontre Hamilton in this park, a report of a man sleeping in the park. According to the officer, the two got into a confrontation. The officer claims that Hamilton grabbed his baton and struck him. And that is when the officer claims he used deadly force to defend himself shooting Hamilton at least 14 times. The officer was fired from his job. The police chief basically saying that the officer did identify Hamilton as mentally ill and did not follow training, and that he instigated that fight.

But again, the case went to a prosecuting attorney and the decision not to charge the police officer. However, we have learned that the federal government will be looking into this case. The Justice Department plans to investigate as well. George Howell, CNN, Milwaukee.

ROMANS: Thanks, George. Breaking overnight, police arresting a Delta Airlines baggage handler for allegedly running a gun smuggling operation aboard passenger jets, jets flying between Atlanta and New York.

Now federal authorities say Eugene Harvey and former Delta employee, Mark Henry, they used carry-on baggage to transport these weapons. Police say one of these suspects admits bringing 18 guns, seven of them loaded, to a flight to New York including an AK-47 and an AR-15.

We will find out more about one of the biggest airport security breaches in years when prosecutors hold a news conference later this afternoon.

To Australia now where a new terror warning is happening. Australia's prime minister saying that security officials have detected an increased level of terrorist chatter following the hostage siege in Sydney.

Tony Abbott also saying a terror attack is likely so there will be an increased police presence across the city. His words come amid a sad farewell to the two victims killed during that attack on a downtown cafe.

Cafe manager, Tori Johnson, and Attorney Katrina Dawson, both of them laid to rest in separate ceremonies. Survivors from the standoff on hand pay their respects.

Dawson and Johnson, both remembered as heroes for trying to wrestle -- in Johnson's case trying to wrestle the gun from the shooter. Dawson was shielding a pregnant friend from the gunfire. Dawson is a mother of three small children.

A lump of coal in the forecast for holiday travelers this holiday travel week. Let's get to meteorologist, Ivan Cabrera, with an early look at your weather -- Ivan.

IVAN CABRERA, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Christine, for most of us, it is going to be a rain event. But the problem is the rain is going to be very heavy and severe weather potential and also some strong winds I think are going to cause some airport delays over the next 48 hours.

Here is the storm right now. It is just getting going across the mid- section of the country. We will have the southeastern side looking at nasty thunderstorms for today and heading into Wednesday.

As far as temperatures, not looking too bad here, 30s and 40s to the north, and 70s and even some 80s down in Florida, but you see the temperatures in Chicago in the 40s so not cold enough quite yet for snowfall.

We will start off as a mix and then eventually as the storm pushes to the east side on the back side of it, we will have colder air and it will snow across the Midwest anywhere from 3 to 5 inches expected here.

Now in the next 48 hours across the southeastern U.S., this is where we have the bull's-eye for severe weather and damaging wind potential and large hail and a few tornadoes.

As we put this in motion, by the time we get into Thursday, Christmas day itself, we are done with the storm. Although a new one getting going across the Rockies so a white Christmas certainly for parts of the western U.S.

So this is the highlighted area. This is for today for the potential of some severe thunderstorms as we head through this afternoon. We'll watch that closely and of course, we will keep an eye through the next couple of days on the big storm heading east.

ROMANS: All right, Ivan, a lump of coal in the weather, but not on your money. Santa Claus is coming to Wall Street. U.S. futures are pointing up right now after a fourth straight day of gains.

The Dow and the S&P record high closes. The Dow jumped 150 points, the 35th record this year. The S&P 500's 50th record close. That is the biggest number of records in a year since all the way back in 1995.

All right, 4.4 million workers will get a raise on New Year, on January 1st, 20 states and the District of Columbia will increase their minimum wages. New legislation raises the hourly rates for 11 states. The rest bumped up through inflation.

It's the largest hike in South Dakota where minimum wage workers get a $1.25 raise. Florida gets a 12-cent boost. After this New Year's increase, 29 states will have a minimum wage above the federal rate of $7.25.

All right, 38 minutes past the hour. Was North Korea the victim of a cyberattack? The reclusive nation gets the internet back, mostly, after a huge outage. Who caused it? Was it U.S., China, other hackers, North Korea itself? A mystery ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROMANS: In North Korea, the internet service is mostly back on this morning after this mysterious, unusual nine and a half hour long total internet blackout in North Korea.

This follows the U.S. claims that Pyongyang was behind the huge cyberattack on Sony Pictures, which ended the studio to pull the picture of "The Interview." So who's behind this hack? What's the U.S. saying about it? Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr, has latest.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Obviously a lot of people wondering if the U.S. could be behind this. Could this be the counter attack or response the White House promised for North Korea's hacking against Sony? Nobody is saying right now, but it's hard to figure out who might be behind it.

Some people saying maybe the North Koreans turned off their own system. Maybe the Chinese cut off access, nobody talking about it. But here at the Pentagon, the game is all about cyber defense right now.

Options being developed to improve Pentagon defenses against any potential North Korean hacking. Security are already very tight, of course, on classified computer network systems.

But a lot of work being done right now just to double check, just to make sure all of the systems are fully secure and developing options for the president.

If he decides to launch some sort of cyber counter attack against North Korea and of course, the administration has other options as well, sanctions or putting North Korea back on the list of countries that sponsors terrorism -- Christine.

ROMANS: All right, Barbara Starr, thank you for that.

To France now where a second car attack has happened on pedestrians in two days. French officials urging calm this morning after at least 11 people were injured Monday when a 37-year-old man rammed his vehicle into a crowd of holiday shoppers in the city of Nantes in Western France.

Police say the suspect then stabbed himself several times. He does not appear to have terrorist motives according to authorities. On Sunday, a man shouting god is great in Arabic, rammed his vehicle into a crowd in Dijon Eastern France injuring 13.

Republican Congressman Michael Grimm of New York expected to plead guilty to one count of tax evasion today. The charge could land him in prison. Sources say he will admit to failing to admit to report $1 million in revenues from his restaurant business prior to being elected in 2010.

Grimm made headlines last year when he threatened to throw a reporter off the Capitol Hill balcony at the end of an interview with a reporter who dared asked him about those legal trouble.

Let's take a look at what is coming up on "NEW DAY." It's 44 minutes past the hour now. Alisyn Camerota joins us now. Good morning.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR, "NEW DAY": Hi, Christine. Good morning to you. So we are following the latest developments on the ambush of the two police officers in New York.

The embattled mayor is calling for protests to stop out of respect for the officers, but not everyone is following that request. Can officials calm tension and restore trust in the police?

We will speak with the dean of New York's congressional delegation Charles Rangle.

Is this the response the president promised? Internet problems persist in North Korea, is the U.S. behind that trouble? We will have the latest plus some interesting poll numbers on how Americans perceive the response to the Sony attack. "NEW DAY" begins at the top of the hour. Chris and I will see you then.

ROMANS: All right, I'll see you too.

ROMANS: All right, 44 minutes past the hour. Growing fallout this morning over the U.S. fugitive living inside Cuba. Governor Chris Christie outraged over the president's new deal as Cuba finally responds.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROMANS: There are new developments in the efforts to get convicted cop killer, Joanne Chesimard, back from Cuba where she escaped after fleeing prison. The island nation is saying it has a right to grant asylum to U.S. fugitives.

That is a clear signal Cuba has no intention of returning Chesimard and it is infuriating Governor Chris Christie. Christie blasting the president and what the governor called the awful deal Obama struck with Cuba.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: Joanne Chesimard, a convicted cop killer by a jury of her peers, without question the fairest criminal justice system in the world, much more just than anything happening in Cuba under the Castro brother, she is now according to an official of the Cuban government persecuted.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: CNN's Cuba correspondent, Patrick Oppman, has the latest on the U.S. efforts to extradite Chesimard and other fugitives from American justice.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PATRICK OPPMAN, CNN CUBA CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Don't expect Cuba where Chesimard is believed to be living, to try to collect on the reward anytime soon. Chesimard is wanted for the murder of a New Jersey state trooper. She is just one of dozens of fugitives believed to be living in Cuba.

They include, Chesimard, on the FBI terrorist list, bank robbers, cop killers and other radicals, some spent decades here. Chesimard lived openly in Havana for some time. After the reward increased to $2 million, she has all, but disappeared from view.

The United States argues she should be returned and all fugitives should be returned. Cuba says there is no extradition agreement with the two countries because after the 1959 revolution, Fidel Castro wanted fugitives returned, but U.S. would not return them.

This will continue as they continue to talk about normalizing ties. With closer tie was Cuba, they will have a better chance of winning the return of the fugitives so they can at long last face justice -- Christine.

ROMANS: All right, Patrick Oppmann in Cuba this morning. Later today, House Republicans will release a report alleging a culture of bias at the f. It will claim IRS employees subverted the non-partisan mission to advance the political goals of President Obama. Several officials, including the acting IRS commissioner have already lost their jobs.

A four-star general will decide the fate of Bowe Bergdahl. General Mark Milley will decide to charge Bergdahl for leaving his post in 2009. He can impose court martial or take no action. This will all be considered after the report from his platoon mates who claim he deserted his post.

"Rolling Stone" asked the Columbia school of journalism to review the article about the gang rape at the University Of Virginia. The review will be conducted by the dean of the journalism school and dean of public affairs.

When it comes to mega lottery payouts, you may be accustomed to seeing one or two big winners. Once and a while, you see an office workplace pool take the winnings. But for Monday in Spain, spreading the wealth is what it is all about. CNN's Al Goodman is in Madrid with the latest -- Al.

AL GOODMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Christine, this is what a ticket looks like in the world's richest lottery, Spain's Christmas lottery el gordo or the fat one. This ticket costs $25. If you have the winning combination, it gets you $400,000. That was not the case. This was my ticket. I won nothing. Nada.

However, others were lucky, many immigrants from Latin America and Europe and Africa. In a single day, they won 100 times their single day's pay. The wealth is spread around as workers and friends and family buy and share tickets all across the country.

It has been going force years. The bloody civil war didn't stop. It the kids sing out the winning numbers on the Royal Opera House in Madrid. The extra holiday cheer, the cash is most welcome in a country still recovering from a deep economic crisis -- Christine.

ROMANS: All right, Al Goodman for us this morning in Madrid.

After all the bad news about auto recalls this year, it turns out there are more cars than ever that will be safe to drive in 2015. We will get an early start on your money next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROMANS: All right. Almost 6:00 in the East. Let's get an EARLY START on your money this morning. The Santa rally in full swing. The market had its fourth straight day of games pushing both the Dow and S&P to record high closes.

The Dow jumped more than 150 to hit the 35th record close of the year. The S&P with the 50th record. What does that mean? It's the highest number of records in one year since 1995. Stocks could swing higher. Futures are up a bit.

The U.S. has hit a French company with the largest criminal bribery fine, a French energy conglomerate to the tune of $772 million. The U.S. Justice Department alleges the company pays tens of millions of bribes to win business to companies around the world in Indonesia and Saudi Arabia and Egypt. The company blamed its used consultants for the bribery.

More cars than ever will be safer to drive in 2015. More models. That is according to the institute for highway safety, which gave 71 cars top mark this year. That's compared to only 33 last year. The institute evaluates cars to protect passengers and 33 cars, including the Prius, outback and Honda CRV got the top award.

A lot of news to get to, including the latest in the investigation into the shooting death of two New York police officers. Mayor De Blasio is calling for unity. "NEW DAY" has that and more starting now.