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CNN Live At Daybreak

Fellow Students, Teachers Shocked by Bishop's Actions

Aired January 08, 2002 - 06:08   ET

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

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Shock and disbelief -- that's how Charlie Bishop's fellow students and teachers are reacting to the teenager's apparent suicide flight into a Tampa high rise.

As CNN's Gary Tuchman reports, no one saw it coming.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They saw the television images like anyone else, but then they heard the pilot's name and realized this was the 15-year old who went to their school.

ANGIE PINERELI (ph), TEACHER: This was something that was totally out of the blue. No one saw it coming. None of my students did; I didn't certainly.

TUCHMAN: And also out of the blue the letter found, in which police say Charles Bishop wrote that he sympathized with Osama bin Laden.

UNIDENTIFIED JOURNALISM TEACHER: I was just amazed; I was shocked; I could not believe it.

TUCHMAN: Shocked because his teachers and friends at East Lake High School say Bishop was appalled by the events of September 11th. The freshman had recently moved with his mother to an apartment complex in Pinellas County Florida.

His mother and grandmother released this statement saying in part, "we had absolutely no prior indication that this might occur. We are exceedingly grateful that no one else was injured. Charles and his family have always fully supported our United States war on terrorism and Osama bin Laden. We do not understand why or how this incident happened. We will always remember Charles as a loving and giving person".

Angie Pinereli (ph) was his Honors English teacher.

PINERELI (ph): Charles was a sweet boy; intelligent; friendly. He had a good sense of humor.

TUCHMAN: A freshman in his math class agreed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED STUDENT: He was just nice and all, you know. He wasn't mean or he was just the very nicest kid you could meet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TUCHMAN: Bishop's journalism teacher saw the horrifying video on TV, heard about the note, and just couldn't make sense of it, especially considering what the teen she called Charlie told her in class about the terrorism of September 11th.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED JOURNALISM TEACHER: He let me know that he wanted to join the Air Force -- the United States Air Force, so bad things like this wouldn't happen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TUCHMAN (on camera): Talking about the biggest news story of the day is a regular part of the journalism class at this high school and this day was no exception. When the students came in, they sadly and in disbelief discussed the life and death of their classmate Charlie, and their memories of him are fond.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED JOURNALISM TEACHER: And I am new to this area and new to teaching, and he knew that. And he was one of two students that gave me a Christmas present.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What did he give you?

UNIDENTIFIED JOURNALISM TEACHER: He gave me a coffee mug and some coffee.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TUCHMAN: What he didn't give his teachers was a sign that something was wrong.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PINERELI (ph): And even the kids said to me (UNINTELLIGIBLE) no way you could have known.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TUCHMAN: Gary Tuchman, CNN, Tampa, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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